Articles | Volume 23, issue 12
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-23-4187-2026
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-23-4187-2026
Research article
 | 
25 Jun 2026
Research article |  | 25 Jun 2026

Experimental assessment of benthic foraminifera as salinity bioindicators: Integrating morphological and eDNA approaches

Yifei Cao, Wenlong Fa, and Yanli Lei

Cited articles

Amao, A. O., Kaminski, M. A., and Babalola, L.: Benthic Foraminifera in Hypersaline Salwa Bay (saudi Arabia): an Insight into Future Climate Change in the Gulf Region?, J. Foraminifer. Res, 48, 29–40, https://doi.org/10.2113/gsjfr.48.1.29, 2018. 
Bentov, S. and Erez, J.: Impact of biomineralization processes on the Mg content of foraminiferal shells: A biological perspective, Geochem. Geophys. Geosyst., 7, 11, https://doi.org/10.1029/2005GC001015, 2006. 
Bentov, S., Brownlee, C., and Erez, J.: The role of seawater endocytosis in the biomineralization process in calcareous foraminifera, P. Natl. Acad. Ssi. USA, 106, 21500–21504, https://doi.org/10.1073pnas.0906636106, 2009. 
Bernhard, J. M., Ostermann, D. R., Williams, D. S., and Blanks, J. K.: Comparison of two methods to identify live benthic foraminifera: A test between Rose Bengal and Cell Tracker Green with implications for stable isotope paleoreconstructions, Paleoceanography, 21, 1–8, https://doi.org/10.1029/2006pa001290, 2006. 
Bokulich, N. A., Subramanian, S., Faith, J. J., Gevers, D., Gordon, J. I., Knight, R., Mills, D. A., and Caporaso, J. G.: Quality-filtering vastly improves diversity estimates from Illumina amplicon sequencing, Nat. Meth., 10, 57–59, https://doi.org/10.1038/nmeth.2276, 2013. 
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Short summary
Tiny marine organisms called foraminifera help track ocean health. We grew them in varying salt levels and analyzed them using microscopes and genetic tools. While traditional methods saw shells decline, genetics revealed a hidden group of soft-bodied types thriving under stress. We also created a model to estimate salinity based on these populations. This proves that combining old and new methods offers a sharper lens for monitoring coastal ecosystems and Earth's history.
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