Naslov
Benthic foraminiferal assemblages in a restricted environment- an example from the Mljet Lakes (Adriatic Sea, Croatia)

Autori
Vaniček, Vlatka ; Juračić, Mladen ; Bajraktarević, Zlatan ; Ćosović, Vlasta

Izvornik
Geologia Croatica (1330-030X) 53 (2000), 2; 269-279

Vrsta, podvrsta i kategorija rada
Radovi u časopisima, članak, znanstveni

Ključne riječi
benthic foraminifera ; anoxia ; restricted environment ; Elphidium ; Haynesina ; Mljet Island ; Adriatic Sea

Sažetak
We report benthic foraminiferal assemblages from a peculiar restricted marine environment, the Mljet Lakes (Mljet Island, Adriatic Sea, Croatia). These lakes are drowned karst dolines, which are connected with the Adriatic Sea through a narrow, shallow channel. Occasional stagnant conditions in the marine lakes cause hypoxic and anoxic conditions in the bottom waters. Such stressed conditions are reflected in oligospecific benthic foraminiferal assemblages with a Shannon-Wiener species diversity index (H) ranging from 0.8 to 1.0 and equitability index (E) ranging from 0.18 to 0.26, identified in samples from each marine lake. In the more dysoxic Malo Jezero, Haynesina depressula dominates an assemblage of 12 benthic foraminiferal species. In the less (and less frequently) hypoxic Veliko Jezero, we found an Asterigerinata mamilla assemblage with 18 foraminiferal species. A more diverse assemblage containing 55 different benthic foraminiferal species occupies an adjacent open-sea station. Long-term salinity measurements indicate that H. depressula tolerates higher salinity than formerly presumed (up to 38), and is well adapted to stressed hypoxic conditions.

Izvorni jezik
Engleski

Znanstvena područja
Geologija

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