Ecology and applications of benthic foraminifera/ John W. Murray

Includes bibliographical references and index

Preface -- 1. Introduction -- 2. Methods -- 3. Aspects of biology and basic ecology -- 4. Marginal marine evvironments -- 5. Shelf seas -- 6. Carbonate environments -- 7. Deep Sea -- 8. Summary of living distributions -- 9. Taphonomic process: formation of dead and fossil assemblages -- 10. Applications

In this volume John Murray investigates the ecological processes that control the distribution, abundance and species diversity of benthic foraminifera in environments ranging from marsh to the deepest ocean. To interpret the fossil record it is necessary to have an understanding of the ecology of modern foraminifera and the processes operating after death leading to burial and fossilisation. This book presents the ecological background required to explain how fossil forms are used in dating rocks and reconstructing past environmental features including changes of sea level. It demonstrates how living foraminifera can be used to monitor modern-day environmental change. Ecology and Applications of Benthic Foraminifera presents a comprehensive and global coverage of the subject using all the available literature. It is supported by a website hosting a large database of additional ecological information (www.cambridge.org/0521828392) and will form an important reference for academic researchers and graduate students in Earth and Environmental Sciences.