Recent Foraminifera from the southern coast of Puerto Rico

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1971

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Abstract

The narrow continental shelf along the southern coast of Puerto Rico is rich in a wide variety of tropical environments. Foraminiferal assemblages of the area reflect the patterns of species associations, controlled by the ecology and distribution of species in the Caribbean- Antilles province. The collections of Recent Foraminifera in the study area from 36 sediment samples consist of 144 species belonging to 72 genera, of which 131 species are benthonic and 13 species are planktonic. Amphistegina gibbosa, Arehaias angulatus, Quinqueloculina seminulum, and Discorbis rosea comprise over 50 percent of the total foraminiferal population, and 53 species comprise less than one percent. Three species are new: Quinqueloculina macelloconcha, Triloculina pyramidiforma, and Lenticulina kaczkae. A systematic study of all species of Foraminifera is included in this report. An analysis of cluster patterns was determined based on Jaccard coefficients of association using presence/absence data. Six biotopes and eight biofacies were determined using cluster analysis. The environmental parameters controlling the biotopes are salinity variations and wave agitation in the nearshore area, sediment distribution and wave agitation on the shallow shelf, and cool temperatures and moderately quiet waters on the outer shelf platform. The biofacies patterns do not correspond to the assemblages that characterize the biotopes. Comparison of the patterns of distribution of Recent Foraminifera from the study area with Recent distributions in other areas of the Caribbean- Antilles region reflect the basic similarity of the faunal assemblages.

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Puerto Rico

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