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Diversity and depth distribution of modern benthic foraminifera offshore Brunei Darussalam

The distribution of modern benthic foraminifera is studied from offshore mixed carbonate- siliciclastic settings of Brunei Darussalam located in northwestern Borneo. The sediments have been collected from 17 sites, i.e., shallow reefs, sunken wrecks and two transects. A total of 231 species have been identified from 8 to 63 metres water depth. Several analyses have been made to understand the patterns of faunal compositions: (1) Cluster analysis was conducted to define relation among the sites ; (2) Diversity indices such as Shannon Wiener and Fisher’s alpha to assess diversity patterns at sites ; (3) Foram Index (FI) to determine whether the water quality indicates oligotrophic conditions. The main foraminifera groups from the reef and wreck samples are larger benthic foraminifera (LBF) especially Calcarinidae and Amphisteginidae, while Dolphin Wreck (DW) and both Muara and Tutong transects are where smaller benthic foraminifera (SBF) flourish from the genera Pseudorotalia and Asterorotalia. The results show correlations between certain taxa with water depth and substrate type.

Benthic foraminifera, Offshore Brunei, Cluster Analysis, Foraminiferal Indicesrsity, Substrate

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