Micropaleontology

Pratul Kumar Saraswati • M.S. Srinivasan

Micropaleontology Principles and Applications Pratul Kumar Saraswati M.S. Srinivasan Department of Earth Sciences Department of Geology Indian Institute of Technology Bombay Banaras Hindu University Mumbai , India Varanasi , India

ISBN 978-3-319-14573-0 ISBN 978-3-319-14574-7 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-14574-7

Library of Congress Control Number: 2015959078

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Springer International Publishing AG Switzerland is part of Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com) Pref ace

Microfossils have been mentioned as early as the fi fth century BC by Herodotus, who travelled to Egypt and noted large size foraminifer Nummulites in the pyra- mids. The history of the study of microfossils since then has seen some major turn- ing points; the major ones being the invention of the microscope in the late seventeenth century, followed by the voyage of HMS Challenger (1872–1876) - the fi rst global marine research expedition, increased activity in exploration of oil after the second world war (1939–1945), and the voyage of the Glomar Challenger by an international initiative to core deep-sea sediments (Deep Sea Drilling Project, 1968). The development of micropaleontology through these years has unequivo- cally established the multidimensional applications of microfossils in solving prob- lems in Earth Science. The oil industry nurtured it since the twentieth century and its core application in subsurface stratigraphy continues in spite of commendable development in geophysical logging and seismic methods to interpret subsurface geology. In fact, micropaleontology has expanded its role by being indispensable in seismic calibration, sequence stratigraphy, and as a tool to guide horizontal drilling of the reservoirs to save the cost of production. The Deep Sea Drilling Project and its successors revealed another dimension of micropaleontology by providing vital information about ocean currents, deep-sea processes and paleoclimates of the past. Microfossils thus became an integral part of the newly developed fi eld of paleoceanography. It may not be inappropriate to say that among the various tracers of earth history, microfossils provide a wealth of information including the evolu- tion of life, age and paleoenvironment of sedimentary strata, paleoclimate and paleoceanography. The multiple applications of microfossils attract students and professionals of various backgrounds to employ microfossils in their research. The subject is usually taught at the postgraduate levels of universities, and it is expected that the student has a basic understanding of the principles of paleontology. Most textbooks gener- ally focus on principles of paleontology in reference to mega invertebrate fossils. However, several issues regarding sample collection, taphonomy, biomineralization and ecological details that are unique to microfossils also need to be explored and described. Keeping this in mind, Part I of the textbook addresses the basic principles

v vi Preface of micropaleontology with examples of microfossils so that those who don’t have a formal background in paleontology can also develop an understanding of the sys- tematic approach to the study of microfossils. It is important to be aware of the strengths and limitations of microfossils and their geological records. Part II gives an overview of the major groups of microfossils including their morphology, ecology and geologic history. Marine microfossils, particularly foraminifera, are discussed in greater detail compared to other groups as they continue to play a major role in most scientifi c investigations. Part III of the book explains the applications of microfossils in biostratigraphy, paleoenvironmental interpretation and paleoclimate reconstruc- tion, basin analysis for hydrocarbon exploration and paleoceanography. We gratefully acknowledge and thank our colleagues and students who have contributed in various ways in preparing the book: Santanu Banerjee, Anupam Ghosh, Sonal Khanolkar, Asmita Singh, Arundeo Singh, Jyoti Sharma, Ajai Rai, C. N. Ravindran, Jahnavi Punekar, Johann Hohenegger and Komal Verma. Thanks are due to Pradeep Sawant who drafted all the illustrations. We thank Sherestha Saini, Editor, Springer Science + Business Media, for initiating the proposal and bringing it to its conclusion. P.K.S. owes more than formal thanks to Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay for providing the academic freedom to work and granting a sabbatical to write the book. M.S.S. expresses his gratitude to Banaras Hindu University for enabling him to carry out continued research in micropaleontology.

P. K. Saraswati M. S. Srinivasan Contents

Part I Principles 1 Introduction ...... 3 1.1 Introduction ...... 3 1.2 Major Groups of Microfossils ...... 4 1.3 Collection of Samples ...... 7 Outcrop Samples ...... 7 Subsurface Samples ...... 8 Deep Sea Drilling Core Samples...... 10 Recent Samples ...... 10 1.4 Separation of Microfossils from Matrix ...... 12 Calcareous Microfossils ...... 12 Calcareous Nannoplankton ...... 15 Siliceous Microfossils ...... 15 Phosphatic Microfossils ...... 15 Plant Microfossils...... 16 1.5 Preparation of Specimens for Scanning Electron Microscopy ...... 16 1.6 Sample Preparation for Shell Geochemistry ...... 16 References ...... 17 2 Taphonomy and Quality of the Fossil Record ...... 19 2.1 Introduction ...... 19 2.2 Decay of Organic Matter ...... 20 2.3 Post-mortem Transport ...... 21 2.4 Diagenesis and Dissolution ...... 25 2.5 Time Averaging ...... 26 2.6 Temporal Resolution and Microstratigraphic Sampling ...... 28 References ...... 32

vii viii Contents

3 Microfossil Biomineralization and Biogeochemistry ...... 35 3.1 Introduction ...... 35 3.2 Function of the Shell ...... 36 3.3 Processes of Biomineralization ...... 37 3.4 Oxygen and Carbon Isotopes in Foraminifera ...... 42 3.5 Trace Elements in Foraminifera ...... 47 References ...... 49 4 Morphology, Taxonomy and Concepts of Species ...... 53 4.1 Introduction ...... 53 4.2 Quantifying Morphology ...... 54 4.3 Taxonomy ...... 57 4.4 Cladistic Analysis ...... 59 4.5 Species Concepts ...... 62 4.6 Database and Software Program ...... 64 References ...... 64 5 Basic Concepts of Ecology ...... 67 5.1 Introduction ...... 67 5.2 Environmental Factors in the Distribution of Organisms...... 69 5.3 Quantitative Analysis for Paleoecology ...... 72 References ...... 77

Part II An Overview of Microfossils 6 Calcareous-Walled Microfossils ...... 81 6.1 Foraminifera ...... 81 Biology of Foraminifera ...... 82 Test Morphology ...... 84 Classifi cation ...... 89 Molecular Systematics ...... 91 Ecology ...... 94 Geologic History ...... 97 6.2 Ostracoda ...... 102 Morphology ...... 102 Classifi cation ...... 106 Ecology ...... 106 Geologic History ...... 108 6.3 Calcareous Nannoplankton: Coccolithophores ...... 109 Biology of the Coccolithophore ...... 110 Morphology ...... 111 Ecology ...... 111 Geologic History ...... 113 6.4 Pteropods ...... 115 References ...... 117 Contents ix

7 Siliceous-Walled Microfossils ...... 121 7.1 Radiolaria ...... 121 Morphology ...... 121 Ecology ...... 124 Geologic History ...... 125 7.2 Diatoms ...... 126 Morphology ...... 126 Ecology ...... 128 Geologic History ...... 129 7.3 Silicofl agellates ...... 130 Morphology ...... 130 Ecology ...... 131 Geologic History ...... 131 References ...... 132 8 Phosphatic Microfossils ...... 133 8.1 Conodonts ...... 133 Morphology ...... 133 Paleoecology ...... 136 Geologic History ...... 136 8.2 Other Phosphatic Microfossils ...... 138 References ...... 138 9 Organic-Walled Microfossils ...... 139 9.1 Dinofl agellates ...... 139 Morphology ...... 139 Ecology ...... 141 Geologic History ...... 142 9.2 Acritarch ...... 143 Morphology ...... 144 Ecology ...... 146 Geologic History ...... 146 9.3 Chitinozoa ...... 147 Morphology ...... 147 Paleoecology ...... 148 Geologic History ...... 148 9.4 Spores and Pollens ...... 149 Morphology ...... 149 Geologic History ...... 150 References ...... 153

Part III Applications 10 Biostratigraphy ...... 157 10.1 Introduction ...... 157 10.2 The Data for Biostratigraphy ...... 158 x Contents

10.3 The Units of Biostratigraphy ...... 162 10.4 Microfossil-Based Biostratigraphic Zonations ...... 163 10.5 Quantitative Biostratigraphy ...... 166 Relative Biostratigraphic Value of Taxa ...... 166 Graphic Correlation ...... 167 Ranking and Scaling (RASC) ...... 168 Constrained Optimization (CONOP) ...... 168 References ...... 169 11 Paleoenvironment and Paleoclimate...... 171 11.1 Introduction ...... 171 11.2 Paleobathymetry and Sea-Level Change ...... 173 11.3 Organic Flux and Dissolved Oxygen ...... 177 11.4 Ocean Eutrophication ...... 180 11.5 Ocean Acidifi cation ...... 180 11.6 Environmental Monitoring ...... 181 11.7 Paleoclimate...... 182 Cenozoic Paleoclimate ...... 184 Paleomonsoon ...... 187 References ...... 189 12 Basin Analysis and Hydrocarbon Exploration ...... 193 12.1 Introduction ...... 193 12.2 Calibration of Seismic Sections ...... 194 12.3 Sequence Stratigraphy ...... 195 12.4 Subsidence Analysis ...... 197 12.5 Thermal History ...... 199 12.6 Biosteering ...... 200 References ...... 201 13 Paleoceanography ...... 203 13.1 Introduction ...... 203 13.2 Deep-Sea Exploration ...... 206 13.3 Approaches to Paleoceanography ...... 207 13.4 Microfossils in Tracing the History of Cenozoic Oceans ...... 210 Glacial–Interglacial Ocean Reconstruction ...... 210 Gateways and Ocean Circulation ...... 212 CCD Fluctuation ...... 214 Hiatus and Deep-Sea Circulation ...... 215 Paleoproductivity ...... 216 References ...... 217

Index ...... 219