Can benthic foraminifera be used as bio-indicators of pollution in areas with a wide range of physicochemical variability?

Martins, Maria Virgínia Alves; Pinto, Anita Fernandes Souza; Frontalini, Fabrizio; Fonseca, Maria Clara Machado da; Terroso, Denise; Laut, Lázaro; Zaaboub, Noureddine; Rodrigues, Maria Antonieta da Conceição; Rocha, Fernando

doi:10.1016/j.ecss.2016.10.011

Cited by 33 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 37 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…This species is described as stress-tolerant in culturing experiments (Hintz et al, 2004) and has been reported living in shallow water (Erginal et al, 2013), similarly to station GBS-04, with a water depth not exceeding 12 m (El Kateb et al, 2018b). Trochammina inflata is a species known to be highly tolerant to physicochemical variability (Murray, 2006;Martins et al, 2016b). It is a cosmopolitan epifaunal or infaunal, euryhaline marsh species, living down to 60 m of water depth and with a general preference for muddy substrates (Usera et al, 2002;Murray, 2006;Benito et al, 2016).…”

Section: Cluster C: Polluted Environment Characterized By Physicochemmentioning

confidence: 93%

Living (stained) foraminifera in the Lesser Syrtis (Tunisia): influence of pollution and substratum

Kateb

Beccari

Stainbank

et al. 2020

PeerJ

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Foraminifera are protozoans with biomineralized tests that can be successfully used as a low cost monitoring tool to assess the health status of marine environments. Living benthic foraminiferal assemblages can provide essential information on natural and/or anthropogenic stresses and provide baseline conditions for studies on fossil material. Several studies have highlighted the negative impact of phosphate treatment industries along the Gulf of Gabes (Lesser Syrtis, Tunisia) on the marine environment. However, only a few studies, based on living (stained) benthic foraminifera, are presently available to assess environmental and/or ecological conditions in this Gulf. Thirty-eight surface sediment samples were quantitatively investigated to identify the dominant living benthic foraminiferal species and potential pollution-sensitive and stress-tolerant species. One-hundred and sixty-one species were identified, and grouped into seven clusters representing different environments within the Gulf. These groups represent polluted settings (Cluster A and B), polluted environments characterized by physicochemical variability (Cluster C), seagrass meadows and “pristine” sites (Cluster D and E) and the region subjected to major industrial impact (Cluster F). The final outlier Cluster, identified the foraminifera barren and all shallow coastal stations. A SIMPER analysis helped identify species with clear and fast responses to environmental perturbations (Ammonia tepida, Amphistegina lessonii, Brizalina striatula, Bulimina marginata, Buliminella elegantissima, Eggereloides scaber, Peneroplis perutusus, Rosalina macropora, Rosalina villardeboana, Trochammina inflata). A comparison with the measured geochemical parameters (TOC, phosphorus in the sediments and heavy metal concentrations in the seawater) has shown that the benthic foraminiferal assemblages are mainly linked to phosphorus, TOC, As and Cd pollution. We also provide here the first compilation of the identified living species in the Lesser Syrtis, their synonyms and digital images of important species.

show abstract

Section: Cluster C: Polluted Environment Characterized By Physicochemmentioning

confidence: 93%

Living (stained) foraminifera in the Lesser Syrtis (Tunisia): influence of pollution and substratum

Kateb

Beccari

Stainbank

et al. 2020

PeerJ

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In pristine environments, salinity, temperature, organic matter, dissolved oxygen affects the foraminifera, but the Fernando de Noronha's port area, are susceptible to the anthropic stressors, including heavy metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). However, the absence of the tests could be more probably linked to the local dynamics and no preservation than to the human stressors influences (Frontalini & Coccioni, 2011;Martins et al, 2013Martins et al, , 2015aMartins et al, , 2015bMartins et al, , 2016Dijkstra et al, 2017).…”

Section: Spatial-temporal Distribution and Composition Of The Sedimentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatial sedimentary distribution, seasonality and the characteristics of organic matter on Fernando de Noronha insular shelf

2018

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The present study was conducted in the Fernando de Noronha archipelago (4°S/32°W). The objective is the evaluation of the spatial distribution and seasonal variations in the sediments and sedimentary organic matter in the northern insular shelf of Fernando de Noronha ("Mar de Dentro"). Nineteen surface sediment samples were collected between December 2013, July 2014 and November 2014. The studied methods included analysis of the grain size, coarse fraction, morphoscopy, total organic matter content, calcium carbonate, organic carbon, total nitrogen, sedimentary phosphorus (organic, inorganic and total), elemental ratios (C/N, C/P) and stable isotopic ratios (δ13C-δ15N). The results allowed to infer that there is no seasonal variation in sediment distribution. Whereas, the shelf sediments present a calcareous sandy sedimentary cover (CaCO3≈ 88.3%), predominantly of well-sorted fine sands, with low organic matter content (TOM<2.87%, TOC<4.29%, TP<0.44µmol/g) and are mainly of marine origin (δ13C ≈ -22.17%PDB). As conclusions was observed a spatial variation, where the southwestern part is dominated by gravelly and northeast part is composed for fine sand, conditioned by the bottom morphology, sediments sources and, wave action. The geochemistry showed some stations with relative enrichment in organic matter content (TOC>3.0%; TN>0.4%) of mixed origin (δ13C= -24.5 to -23.0%PDB), which were related to anthropogenic impacts and the biotic and abiotic local processes.

show abstract

“…Many studies have demonstrated the potential of foraminifera to reflect environmental changes of coastal and open marine systems on soft sediments (e.g., Alve, 1995;Burone et al, 2006;Mojtahid et al, 2006;Frontalini et al, 2009;Frontalini & Coccioni, 2011;Martins et al, 2013Martins et al, , 2016Martins et al, , 2019Bergamin et al, 2019). In Norwegian fjords, it has been shown that benthic foraminiferal communities significantly correlate with benthic macrofaunal communities, confirming that foraminifera can be as good sentinels of environmental conditions as macrofaunal (Bouchet et al, 2018a).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Opportunities and challenges in incorporating benthic foraminifera in marine and coastal environmental biomonitoring of soft sediments: from science to regulation and practice

Sousa

Yamashita

Semensatto

et al. 2020

J. Sediment. Environ.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Scientific studies have demonstrated the usefulness of benthic foraminifera as bioindicators to assess the health of marine, coastal, and transitional ecosystems. Similar to macrofauna, these organisms are reliable proxies for biomonitoring. Despite recent scientific advances, Brazilian official monitoring plans using biotic indices on coastal and ocean environments with soft sediment areas remain mostly restricted to a few types of organisms. Therefore, to include benthic foraminifera in Brazilian biomonitoring routines regulated by national environmental guidelines and standards, the paper presents the challenges, which must be overcome, some recommendations and steps to move forward to implement foraminifera as bioindicators in biomonitoring routines. In light of it, it is essential to consider the contribution of the Brazilian foraminiferal research in this implementation process, improving ecological quality indices, adapting methods, and applying genetics tools. This paper is a step in this direction, which aims to strengthen the role of benthic foraminifera as a reliable tool in Brazilian biomonitoring.

show abstract

Can benthic foraminifera be used as bio-indicators of pollution in areas with a wide range of physicochemical variability?

Cited by 33 publications

References 37 publications

Living (stained) foraminifera in the Lesser Syrtis (Tunisia): influence of pollution and substratum

Living (stained) foraminifera in the Lesser Syrtis (Tunisia): influence of pollution and substratum

Spatial sedimentary distribution, seasonality and the characteristics of organic matter on Fernando de Noronha insular shelf

Opportunities and challenges in incorporating benthic foraminifera in marine and coastal environmental biomonitoring of soft sediments: from science to regulation and practice

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About