Knowra Foraminifera Foraminifera Foraminifera are mostly marine single-celled organisms that build shells, often divided into chambers, and extend threadlike pseudopods through openings.
Test (biology) : A test is a hard external covering secreted or assembled by an organism, including the shell of a foraminifer. Foraminiferal shells are called tests, and their material and shape vary widely.
Foraminiferal biostratigraphy : Foraminiferal biostratigraphy uses the appearance and disappearance of species to correlate and date sedimentary rock layers. Rapid evolutionary turnover makes many fossil foraminifera useful markers for matching strata.
Nummulites : Nummulites are large, lens-shaped fossil foraminifera with coiled, chambered tests, abundant in some Paleogene limestones. Their conspicuous tests made them major components of ancient shallow-marine carbonate deposits.
Rhizaria : Rhizaria is a major eukaryotic lineage that includes foraminifera, radiolarians, and several other groups. Molecular evidence places foraminifera within this broader lineage of mostly unicellular organisms.
Radiolaria : Radiolaria are mostly marine single-celled eukaryotes that commonly form intricate mineral skeletons and capture prey with pseudopods. They share a broad rhizarian ancestry with foraminifera but typically build different skeletons.
Chamber formation in foraminifera : Chamber formation is the sequential addition of compartments to a foraminiferal test as the organism grows. Many species enlarge their tests by adding chambers around earlier ones.
Paleoceanography : Paleoceanography reconstructs the history of oceans, including past circulation, temperature, chemistry, and biological conditions. Fossil foraminifera provide records of past ocean conditions from seafloor sediments.
Globigerina : Globigerina is a genus of planktonic foraminifera with globular chambers and a widespread fossil record. Its shells are common in marine sediments and illustrate planktonic test forms.
Eukaryote : A eukaryote is an organism whose cells contain a nucleus and other membrane-bound compartments. Foraminifera are eukaryotic cells with complex internal organization.
Plankton : Plankton are organisms that drift in water and cannot swim effectively against currents. Planktonic foraminifera drift in the water column, unlike many bottom-dwelling species.
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