Calcification response of planktic foraminifera to environmental change in the western Mediterranean Sea during the industrial era ...

• Main Authors: Béjard, Thibauld M., Rigual-Hernández, Andrés S., Flores, José A., Tarruella, Javier P., Durrieu de Madron, Xavier, Cacho, Isabel, Haghipour, Neghar, Hunter, Aidan, Sierro, Francisco J.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: ETH Zurich 2023
• Subjects: Planktonic foraminifera
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.3929/ethz-b-000610904; http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11850/610904

The Mediterranean Sea sustains a rich and fragile ecosystem currently threatened by multiple anthropogenic impacts that include, among others, warming, pollution, and changes in seawater carbonate speciation associated to increasing uptake of atmospheric CO2. This environmental change represents a major risk for marine calcifiers such as planktonic foraminifera, key components of pelagic Mediterranean ecosystems and major exporters of calcium carbonate to the sea floor, thereby playing a major role in the marine carbon cycle. In this study, we investigate the response of planktic foraminifera calcification in the northwestern Mediterranean Sea on different timescales across the industrial era. This study is based on data from a 12-year-long sediment trap record retrieved in the in the Gulf of Lions and seabed sediment samples from the Gulf of Lions and the promontory of Menorca. Three different planktic foraminifera species were selected based on their different ecology and abundance: Globigerina bulloides, ... : Biogeosciences, 20 (7) ...