Larger benthic foraminifera and their distribution patterns on the Spermonde shelf, South Sulawesi

A systematic description of the distributional pattern of 20 species of larger benthic foraminifera on the Spermonde Archipelago and their relation with environmental parameters is presented. Around 13 islands transects at the exposed and leeward slope were sampled. Apart from parameters like substrate type, hydrodynamic energy and light intensity (directly related to depth) also nutrient availability and environmental stabiltity determine the distribution over the shelf. Some of the species, and especially the calcarinids, are less specialised to some of these parameters than in other areas. Elphidium craticulatum, showing chloroplast husbandry, is an important fauna component.