AB 25:121-138 (2016)  -  DOI: https://doi.org/10.3354/ab00658

ABSTRACT: Benthic foraminiferal assemblages are widely used as bioproxies for coastal environment monitoring. The present study investigated seasonal variations in live benthic foraminiferal assemblages over a period of 12 mo from the largest coastal lagoon in Asia, which is strongly influenced by tropical monsoons. The investigation revealed an extremely low diversity of benthic foraminiferal assemblages, comprising 12 species, of which 8 were agglutinated. The most dominant taxa throughout the study period belonged to the genus Ammonia. The living assemblage was restricted to the topmost 4 cm of the sediment, with the majority of assemblages occurring in the top 2 cm. Data analysis revealed the presence of a significant variation in the biotic assemblage, indicating a patchy distribution. Overall, some of the benthic foraminiferal species, such as Ammomarginulina sp. and Miliammina obliqua, showed strong seasonal variation, while the dominant Ammonia spp. did not show any temporal variation. The environmental parameters displayed significant correlations with certain species, although no single factor could be identified as being the major force driving assemblage composition. The present findings of seasonality and correlations observed between certain factors with certain species may be utilized to improve biomonitoring in similar settings on a global scale.

KEY WORDS: Benthic foraminifera · Coastal lagoon · Live assemblage · ANOSIM · UPGMA-based cluster · Ammonia

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Cite this article as: Sen A, Bhadury P (2016) Exploring the seasonal dynamics within the benthic foraminiferal biocoenosis in a tropical monsoon-influenced coastal lagoon. Aquat Biol 25:121-138. https://doi.org/10.3354/ab00658 Export citation Share:    Facebook - - linkedIn