Benthic Foraminifera of the Gulf of Mexico

"C. Wylie Poag's updated and expanded atlas on the foraminifera of the Gulf of Mexico is an essential reference for all who work on this diverse group of protists. Many of the species documented in this compendium occur elsewhere in the world ocean, and the environmental parameters that control their distributions are universal. The relationship between test morphology and environment is often complex, however, and we strive to understand the trends related to depth and geography in order to enhance their utility as paleoenvironmental indicators. All who study comparative foraminiferal faunas, whether modern or fossil, and regardless of location, should find this book pertinent."—Kenneth L. Finger, Senior Museum Scientist, University of California Museum of Paleontology (Berkeley)

"Poag’s career-long interest in benthic foraminifera and habitats in and around the Gulf of Mexico are revealed in this extensively illustrated and clearly written synthesis of more than two hundred years of scientific, environmental, and economic research in this vital region.  Given the increasing use of foraminifera as environmental indicators, this book provides a model for similar syntheses in other regions worldwide."—Pamela Hallock, Professor, College of Marine Science, University of South Florida

"In this thoroughly documented update of his now 32-year-old volume on modem Gulf of Mexico benthic foramnifera Wylie Poag has added 2,700 new sample stations, including shelf zones ofhypoxia, intraslope basins and seventeen additional estuarine systems to the over 4,500 stations available in 1981. All the figures from Poag (1981) dealing with physiography,  physical oceanography, ecology, benthic foraminiferal provinces of the GOM have been reconstituted in colored digital format to which some 41 new figures, four tables, and several appendices containing supplementary figures and table as well as lists of taxa reported in the GOM organized by their distribution pattem(s) have been added. Generic predominance facies and biofacies are delineated for the entire region--a rapid and efficient manner to interpret the geohistory of this area when combined with similar studies in the Mesozoic and Cenozoic of the GOM. The volume is profusely illustrated with 68 plates of exquisitely rendered SEMs of benthic foraminfera which feature complementary multiple views of trochoid, and apical views ofbiserial (uvigerinids), forms which are very useful in taxonomic differentiation.
 
This book is highly recommended to all those engaged in academic and/or applied/petroleum exploration pursuits in the Gulf of Mexico and will rapidly establish itself as the standard reference work in its field. It is simply the most comprehensive compilation of its kind."—William A. Berggren, Distinguished Guest Professor, Rutgers University