Deep Sea Ostracodes and Climate Change

• Published in: The Paleontological Society Papers
• Main Authors: Cronin, Thomas M., Dwyer, Gary S.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge University Press (CUP) 2003
• Subjects: Arctic; Pacific; Climate change
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s1089332600002230; https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S1089332600002230

Ostracodes are bivalved Crustacea whose fossil shells constitute the most abundant and diverse metazoan group preserved in sediment cores from deep and intermediate ocean water depths. The ecology, zoogeography, and shell chemistry of many ostracode taxa makes them useful for paleoceanographic research on topics ranging from deep ocean circulation, bottom-water temperature, ecological response to global climate change and many others. However, the application of ostracodes to the study of climate change has been hampered by a number of factors, including the misconception that they are rare or absent in deep-sea sediments and the lack of taxonomic and zoogeographic data. In recent years studies from the Atlantic, Pacific, and Arctic Oceans show that ostracodes are abundant enough for quantitative assemblage analysis and that the geochemistry of their shells can be a valuable tool for paleotemperature reconstruction. This paper presents practical guidelines for using ostracodes in investigations of climate-driven ocean variability and the ecological and evolutionary impacts of these changes.