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The Late Holocene Foraminifera from Andaman Islands, Andaman Sea, Bay of Bengal

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Book cover Ecology and Conservation of Tropical Marine Faunal Communities

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Abstract

The Andaman and Nicobar archipelago supports a unique diversity of fauna and flora of the Indian sub-continent. The geological history of the last 2 million years is significant as it is directly related to human evolution and as such the climate and environment of the last 10,000 years have implications on the present day fauna and flora. This chapter highlights the foraminiferal diversity of the south Andaman Island. These include three distinct environments, viz. the rocky shore, the sandy shore and the intertidal muddy region. The foraminiferal genus Elphidium is common along the Rangachang on the west coast followed by Amphistegina. Shore sand shows the common occurrence of Calcarina while in the intertidal clays Trochammina inflata is common. In general the foraminiferal diversity is low and the composition bears Indo-Pacific affinity to coral reef environment.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Visiting Faculty, Department of Geology and Petroleum Technology, Wadia College, Pune, 411001, Maharashtra, India

    C. Rajshekhar

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  1. C. Rajshekhar
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Correspondence to C. Rajshekhar .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Zoological Survey of India, Kolkata, India

    K. Venkataraman

  2. Zoological Survey of India, Port Blair, India

    C. Sivaperuman

  3. Zoological Survey of India, Port Blair, Andaman und Nico.In., India

    C. Raghunathan

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Rajshekhar, C. (2013). The Late Holocene Foraminifera from Andaman Islands, Andaman Sea, Bay of Bengal. In: Venkataraman, K., Sivaperuman, C., Raghunathan, C. (eds) Ecology and Conservation of Tropical Marine Faunal Communities. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-38200-0_1

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