Foraminifera as Tracers of Environmental Change from Present to Past

Foraminifera are among the most widely used biological archives in paleoceanographic and environmental studies. Their calcareous tests preserve a wealth of geochemical and morphological information that reflects the physical, chemical, and biological conditions of the water column and sediments in which they lived. Because of their widespread distribution, sensitivity to environmental parameters, and excellent preservation in marine sediments, foraminifera have become key tracers for reconstructing oceanographic conditions, climate variability, and biogeochemical processes from seasonal to glacial-interglacial timescales. When combined with co-occurring microfossil groups (e.g., diatoms, dinoflagellates, and other microfossils), foraminiferal-based interpretations gain additional taxonomic and ecological information, further refining paleoenvironmental and modern assessments. In addition, living foraminiferal communities are increasingly used to monitor anthropogenic changes in marine ecosystems. As marine environments face accelerating change, it is essential to advance our understanding of how foraminifera respond to and record environmental shifts—both in the past and present.

The aim of this Research Topic is to explore and expand the use of foraminifera as indicators of environmental change across a range of temporal and spatial scales. We seek to bring together studies that advance the development and calibration of foraminiferal-based proxies, as well as those that apply these tools to reconstruct past ocean and climate variability or assess present-day ecosystem responses. Particular attention is given to refining proxy sensitivity, addressing uncertainties in interpretations, and integrating multiple lines of evidence from geochemical, ecological, and sedimentological approaches. Contributions that focus on key climatic transitions, regional oceanographic variability, or the response of foraminifera to anthropogenic stressors (e.g., ocean acidification, warming, deoxygenation) are encouraged. This Research Topic aims to foster interdisciplinary dialogue and showcase how foraminifera can be used to bridge modern environmental monitoring and paleoenvironmental reconstruction, thus contributing to our understanding of Earth system dynamics.

We welcome contributions that focus on modern, Holocene, and deeper-time applications of foraminifera as tracers of environmental change. Manuscript types may include original research articles, reviews, methods papers, and data reports. Specific themes of interest include:

• Geochemical proxies (e.g., stable isotopes, trace elements)
• Test morphology and size variation as ecological indicators
• Assemblage analyses and ecological modeling
• Taphonomy and diagenetic effects on proxy data
• Multiproxy reconstructions of past oceanographic and climatic variability
• Studies linking modern foraminiferal ecology to environmental stressors
• Innovations in proxy development and calibration datasets
• Studies of foraminifera in association with co-occurring microfossils (e.g., diatoms, dinoflagellates)

Submissions from all marine environments and climatic zones are welcome, especially those integrating foraminiferal proxies with other sedimentary, geochemical, or modeling approaches to investigate environmental change.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Policy and Practice Reviews
• Policy Brief
• Review
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: Foraminifera, Paleoceanography, Proxies, Marine Sediments, Climate Change

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.