Description: Culturing experiments exposed the scleractinian corals Porites lobata and Porites lichen to a mixture of dissolved chromium (Cr), manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), silver (Ag), cadmium (Cd), tin (Sn), mercury (Hg) and lead (Pb) in a wide concentration range for a period of more than a year. The aim was to examine whether the incorporation of heavy metals into the aragonitic skeleton of the corals is a direct function of their concentration in seawater. Therefore, the trace-element-to-calcium ratio (TE/Ca) in the coral aragonite precipitated during culturing was measured by Laser ablation ICP-MS in 2020. The measurement showed that all metals used here were measureable in the coral skeleton and only minor, non-systematic intra- and interspecies differences in the trace metal concentrations was found. A positive correlation between the TE/Ca values and the coral skeleton was found for Cr, Mn, Ni, Zn, Ag, Cd and Pb. Cu, Sn and Hg did not show any clear trend. This dataset shows time resolved trace element-to-calcium values of coral colonies A to D cultured in the metal system along the measured Laser ablation ICP-MS scanning lines (Line XY stands for different Laser ablation lines measured at different positions at one respective coral colony) and values derived from the composite lines. Measurements were carried out from the top of the coral to the bottom and the distance starting from the top is indicated as “Elapse Time”. The energy density of the laser was set to 10 J/cm3, the laser spot size was 120 µm diameter and the stage moved 50 µm/s. Prior to every scan, a preablation pass with a spot size of 160 µm diameter was carried out to clean the cut surface of the coral skeleton. Culturing experiments were configured with two identically experimental aquaria. Four different coral colonies and two different species were used (Porites lobate Coral A-C, Porites lichen Coral D). All colonies were divided into subcolonies and growth control was performed with Alizarin Red S prior and during the experiment. One subcolony was placed in each experimental tank. The control aquarium remained unmodified while the trace metal concentration in the metal aquarium was elevated stepwise (Phase 1-4, Phase 1 = lowest metal concentration). The trace metal concentration in both tanks was monitored during the culturing period. After the experiment and more than 15 months later, specimens were cut again and the trace metal concentration in the coral skeleton was determined. It should be noted that coral D died 2.5 weeks after the exposure to the highest metal concentration in phase 4. TE/Ca values are processes as followed: (1) Time resolves raw intensities (in counts per seconds) for all isotopes measured were processed with the software Iolite (Version 4). The determination of element/Ca ratios was performed after the method of Rosenthal et al. (1999). High values of 25Mg, 27Al or 55Mn at the beginning of an ablation profile were related to contamination on the surface of the coral or remains of organic matter and these parts of the profiles were excluded from further data processing. (2) The NIST SRM 612 glass (Jochum et al., 2011) was used for monitoring and correction of the instrument drift. (3) The detection limit was defined by 3.3*SD of the gas blank in counts per seconds for every element in the raw data. Only values above this limit were used for further analyses and no data below the LOQ (limit of quantification = 10*SD) were interpreted. After processing the data with Iolite, an outlier detection of the TE/Ca ratios of the samples was performed. If trace metal values from deviated more than ±2SD from the average of the samples from the corresponding culturing phase, values were defined as outliers and discarded. (4) A composite line was calculated individually for all colonies consisting of the laser ablation measurements along the main growth axis of the coral (coral A line 1-3, coral B line 1-3, coral C line 2 + 3, coral D line 1). Laser ablation measurements along lines that were deviating from the main growth axis of the coral were not taken into account. Calculations were performed with QAnalyseries (Kotov and Paelike, 2018).

Description: Heavy metal uptake of benthic foraminifera in shelf regions influenced by anthropogenic impacts in terms of removing these potentially harmful metals from the seawater

Description: Heavy metal pollution from anthropogenic sources increasingly influence marine environments and biota because of their toxicity, persistence and bioaccumulation. Especially coastal environments act as natural catchments for anthropogenic pollutants because these areas are highly affected by industry, agriculture and urban sewage runoff. In nearly all natural environments that are harmed by heavy metal pollution, a combination of several pollutants occurs at the same time. In marginal seas and coastal areas, benthic foraminifera are common in meiofaunal associations, and they can be used as biomonitoring tool for changes in environmental parameters like temperature, salinity, or redox conditions. Furthermore, foraminifera take up heavy metals from the seawater and incorporate those into their carbonate shells during calcification. Moreover, foraminifera have a short life cycle and can therefore react immediately to contaminations of the environment. Here, we will present results from culturing studies with Ammonia aomoriensis, Elphidium excavatum and Ammonia batava addressing the relationship of heavy metal concentration in the seawater and in the foraminiferal tests. The partitioning factor between the ambient seawater and the calcium carbonate of the foraminifera is constrained by continuous water monitoring and laser ablation ICP – MS measurements on single chambers grown during the experiment in a manipulated culturing medium. The foraminifera were exposed to a combination of ten different heavy metals over a range of concentrations comparable to current conditions in medium to high pollutedhigh-polluted areas. A correlation between the heavy metal concentration in the culture medium and in the foraminiferal calcite was recognised for several heavy metals (e.g. Cd, Cr, Pb). Once the carbonate/seawater metal partitioning coefficients are constrained with certainty, investigations of the chemistry of benthic foraminiferal shells offer an advanced and reliable method to monitor short-term changes in the concentrations and bioavailability of toxic elements in seawater.

Description: Particular heavy metals e.g. zinc serve as micronutrients for eukaryotic life and play an important role for cellular metabolism, growth of organisms, reproduction and enzymatic activity. They occur naturally in the environment as trace ingredient in soils, water, rocks, plants and animals. However, in higher concentrations, most heavy metals become toxic and have serious hazard effects on marine biota. Furthermore, they are highly persistent in the marine environment and can be hardly degraded by organisms. Especially coastal environments act as natural catchment basins for anthropogenic pollutants because these areas are highly affected by industry, agriculture and urban runoff. Therefore, it is vitally important to assess past spatial and temporal distribution patterns and to compare those with recent pollution in order to evaluate contemporary emission reduction measures. An emerging paleo-tool is the heavy metal incorporation into foraminiferal shells calcite, which offers monitoring of anthropogenic footprints on the environmental system. Heavy metal records in foraminiferal tests along a sediment core from the North Sea track pollution events of local (e.g. shipyard, ironworks and metallurgy) and global (e.g. market cycles) origin. We analysed the heavy metal concentrations in tests of Ammonia batava (Mn, Zn, Cd Cu etc.) by laser ablation ICP – MS measurements. These metals reveal the pollution history of the North Sea during the last 500 years with focus on the Early Modern Period.

Description: Shallow marginal seas have been highly influenced by human activities since several hundred years. Especially near – shore environments were affected by the input of anthropogenic pollutants like heavy metals. Coastal cities rapidly expanded and greater shipyards were established during late 19th and early 20th century. This in turn, led to an elevated input of heavy metals into the coastal systems and to significant pollution of the environment. Heavy metals cause deleterious effects on biota because of their toxicity, persistence and bioaccumulation. Therefore, it is vitally important to assess past spatial and temporal distribution patterns and to compare those with recent pollution in order to evaluate contemporary emission reduction measures. An emerging paleo-tool is the heavy metal incorporation into foraminiferal shells calcite, which offers monitoring of anthropogenic footprints on the environmental system. Heavy metal records in foraminiferal tests along two sediment cores from the Baltic and the North Sea track pollution events of local (e.g. shipyard, ironworks and metallurgy) and global (e.g. market cycles) origin. We analysed the heavy metal concentrations in tests of Ammonia aomoriensis or Elphidium excavatum (Mn, Zn, Cd Cu etc.) by laser ablation ICP – MS measurements. These metals reveal the pollution history of Baltic and North Sea during the last 500 years.

Description: Heavy metal pollution originating from anthropogenic sources, e.g. mining, industry and extensive land use, increasingly influence tropical marine environments. The elevated input of heavy metals into the marine system potentially affects the biota because of their toxicity, persistence and bioaccumulation. Corals are increasingly used as an indicator for reconstructions of past dynamics of environmental factors like temperature or carbonate system parameters. Especially the massive scleractinian coral Porites provides an excellent tool for reconstructions because of their wide distribution (e.g. Great Barrier Reef, Caribbean, Australia or the tropical region of the Indo – Pacific) and because of their high growth rates allowing measurements at sub - annual resolution as well as building environmental archives covering hundreds of years. Furthermore, recent studies demonstrated that the trace metal concentration in the coral skeleton is most likely linked to local (or global) seawater chemistry including contaminations at various scales. Therefore, the metal concentration in the coral skeleton offers the opportunity of monitoring the spatial and temporal distribution patterns of heavy metals in the environment so contemporary emission reduction measures can be evaluated. Here we will present the final results of culturing studies addressing the relationship of heavy metal concentrations in the seawater and those in the coral skeleton. The partitioning factor between the ambient seawater and the aragonite of the corals is constrained by continuous water monitoring with weekly to biweekly sampling intervals and laser ablation measurements of grown skeleton. Culturing experiments with Porites lobata, Porites lichen, Montipora sp., Seriatopora sp. and Stylophora sp. are performed. The concentrations of heavy metals in the culturing medium are increased in four phases by a factor between 5 and 10 over a time period of more than a year. The results will facilitate a new way to monitor anthropogenic footprints in presumably pristine tropical environments as well as areas of high human impact.

Description: Supratidal sands are vitally important for coastal defence in the German Wadden Sea. They are less affected by human activities than other areas as they are located far off the mainland shore, touristical and commercial activities are generally prohibited. Therefore, supratidal sands are of high ecological interest. Nevertheless, the faunal inventory and distribution pattern of microorganisms on these sands were studied very little. The composition of living and dead foraminiferal assemblages was therefore investigated along a transect from the supratidal sand Japsand up to Hallig Hooge. Both assemblages were dominated by calcareous foraminifera of which Ammonia batava was the most abundant species. Elphidium selseyense and Elphidium williamsoni were also common in the living assemblage, but Elphidium williamsoni was comparably rare in the dead assemblage. The high proportions of Ammonia batava and Elphidium selseyense in the living assemblage arose from the reproduction season that differed between species. While Ammonia batava and Elphidium selseyense just finished their reproductive cycles, Elphidium williamsoni was just about to start. This was also confirmed by the size distribution patterns of the different species. The dead assemblage revealed 20 species that were not found in the living assemblage of which some were reworked from older sediments (e.g., Bucella frigida) and some were transported via tidal currents from other areas in the North Sea (e.g., Jadammina macrescens). The living foraminiferal faunas depicted close linkages between the open North Sea and the mainland. Key species revealing exchange between distant populations were Haynesina germanica, Ammonia batava and different Elphidium species. All these species share an opportunistic behaviour and are able to inhabit a variety of different environments; hence, they well may cope with changing environmental conditions. The benthic foraminiferal association from Japsand revealed that transport mechanisms via tides and currents play a major ecological role and strongly influence the faunal composition at this site.

Description: LivingAmmoniaspecies and an inventory of dead assemblages from Adriatic subtidal, nearshoreenvironments were investigated at four stations off Bellaria, Italy.Ammonia falsobeccarii, Ammonia parkinso-niana, Ammonia tepida, andAmmonia venetawere recognized in the living (rose-bengal-stained) fauna, andAmmonia bellarian. sp. is described herein for the first time.Ammonia beccariiwas only found in the deadassemblage. The biometry of 368 living individuals was analysed by using light microscopic and scanning elec-tron microscopic images of three aspects. A total of 15 numerical and 8 qualitative parameters were measuredand assessed, 5 of which were recognized to be prone to a certain subjectivity of the observer. The accuracy ofnumerical data as revealed by the mean residuals of parallel measurements by different observers ranged from0.5 % to 5.5 %. The results indicated a high degree of intraspecific variability. The test sizes of the individualspecies were log-normally distributed and varied among the stations. Parameters not related to the growth ofthe individuals, i.e. flatness of the tests, dimensions of the second-youngest chamber, proloculus, umbilical andpore diameter, sinistral–dextral coiling, and umbilical boss size, were recognized as being species-distinctive incombination. They may well supplement qualitative criteria that were commonly used for species discriminationsuch as a lobate outline, a subacute or rounded peripheral margin, or the degree of ornamentation on the spiraland umbilical sides. The averages of the measured parameters were often lower than the range of previouslypublished values, mainly because the latter were retrieved from a few adult specimens and not from the wholeassemblage as in the present approach. We conclude that the unprecedented high proportions ofAmmonia bec-cariiin the northern Adriatic may well be artificial. A robust species identification without genetic analyses ispossible by considering designated biometric parameters. This approach is also applicable to earlier literaturedata, and their re-assessment is critical for a correct denomination of recent genotypes.

Description: Heavy metal pollution originating from anthropogenic sources, e.g., mining, industry and extensive land use, is increasing in many parts of the world and influences coastal marine environments for a long time. The elevated input of heavy metals into the marine system potentially affects the biota because of their toxicity, persistence and bioaccumulation. An emerging tool for environmental applications is the heavy metal incorporation into foraminiferal tests calcite, which facilitates monitoring of anthropogenic footprints on recent and past environmental systems. The aim of this study is to investigate whether the incorporation of heavy metals in foraminifera is a direct function of their concentration in seawater. Culturing experiments with a mixture of dissolved chromium (Cr), manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), silver (Ag), cadmium (Cd), tin (Sn), mercury (Hg) and lead (Pb) in artificial seawater were carried out over a wide concentration range to assess the uptake of heavy metals by the near-shore foraminiferal species Ammonia aomoriensis, Ammonia batava and Elphidium excavatum. Seawater analysis exhibited the increasing metal concentrations between culturing phases and revealed high metal concentrations in the beginning of the culturing phases due to the punctual metal addition. Furthermore, a loss of metals during the culturing process was discovered, which lead to a deviation between the expected and the actual concentrations of the metals in seawater. Laser ablation ICP-MS analysis of the newly formed calcite revealed species-specific differences in the incorporation of heavy metals. The foraminiferal calcite of all three species reveals a strong positive correlation with Pb and Ag concentrations in the culturing medium. Ammonia aomoriensis further showed a correlation with Mn and Cu, A. batava with Mn and Hg and E. excavatum with Cr and Ni, and partially also with Hg. Zn, Sn and Cd showed no clear trend for the species studied, which may be caused by the little variation of these metals in seawater. Our calibrations and the calculated partition coefficients render A. aomoriensis, A. batava and E. excavatum as natural archives that enable the direct quantification of metals in polluted and pristine environments. This in turn allows monitoring of the ecosystem status of areas that are potentially under the threat of anthropogenic pollution in order to evaluate contemporary emission reduction measures.