Skip to main content Accessibility help
×
Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-t5tsf Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-02T19:56:42.919Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

6 - The response of planktonic foraminifera to the Late Pliocene intensification of Northern Hemisphere glaciation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 August 2009

Stephen J. Culver
Affiliation:
East Carolina University
Peter F. Rawson
Affiliation:
University College London
Get access

Summary

INTRODUCTION

Planktonic foraminifera are microscopic, free-floating protists that are widely distributed throughout the surface waters of the world's oceans. Unlike other members of the marine micro-zooplankton, planktonic foraminifera secrete a calcareous test during the course of their life cycle and, as a result, are a major contributor to the marine sediments that accumulate at the sea floor. Substantial deposits of this ‘Globigerina ooze’, more correctly termed foraminiferal ooze, are preserved within the geological record, often reaching thicknesses of several hundred metres. The excellent representation of planktonic foraminifera within Cenozoic marine sediments, whilst being disproportionate to their actual abundance levels within the total biomass of the marine zooplankton in the surface waters, is one of the prime reasons for the extensive usage of this particular microfossil group in both biostratigraphical and palaeoecological investigations.

Wei and Kennett (1986) documented an overall decline in the diversity of planktonic foraminiferal faunas over the last 5 million years, with species diversity levels in the modern ocean being approximately two-thirds those of the Neogene maximum. The most significant climatic event during this period of time was the rapid expansion of the Northern Hemisphere glaciations around 2.5 million years ago (Shackleton et al., 1984). It has been shown that ocean circulation patterns were significantly affected by the environmental changes that accompanied the Late Pliocene build-up of the Northern Hemisphere ice-sheets (Loubere & Moss, 1986; Raymo et al., 1989).

Type
Chapter
Information
Biotic Response to Global Change
The Last 145 Million Years
, pp. 79 - 96
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2000

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure [email protected] is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×