Monothalamous foraminifera from West Spitsbergen fjords, Svalbard: a brief overview

During the 2004 summer season, 14 sediment samples were collected in Kongs− fjorden and Isfjorden, West Spitsbergen, from 6 down to 345 m water−depth (mwd). The samples yielded abundant assemblage of monothalamous foraminifera, belonging to almost 40 morphotypes. Our qualitative (>125 μm) and quantitative data (125–500 μm) allowed to distinguish three water−depth related assemblages in both Kongsfjorden and Adventfjorden (branch of Isfjorden), indicating that soft−walled monothalamous foraminifera show similar habitat gradation along fjord axis as calcareous and robust agglutinated taxa. Among the monothalamous foraminifera, the subtidal assemblage (6 mwd) was dominated by various unidentified allogromiids. The second, shallow−water assemblage (44–110 mwd) was dom− inated by Psammophaga sp. 1–3, Hippocrepinella crassa, Hippocrepinella cf. hirudinea, and large Gloiogullmia sp. 2. The deep−water (150–345 mwd) monothalamous assemblage was dominated by Psammophaga sp. 4, pear−shaped Hippocrepina sp., Hippocrepina in− divisa, and long Cylindrogullmia sp. 2, as well as large agglutinated species Hyperammina subnodosa with attached Tholosina bulla, Hyperammina fragilis and Lagenammina sp.