Effects of sampling site, season, and substrate on foraminiferal assemblages grown from propagule banks from lagoon sediments of Corfu Island (Greece, Ionian Sea)

A study on the Old Town of Corfu reveals that foraminiferal propagule banks—reservoirs of small, viable foraminifera—act as dynamic species pools that can rapidly respond to environmental changes. Researchers exposed propagules from two lagoons to controlled conditions, finding distinct local propagule compositions while also detecting abundant allochthonous taxa, indicating regional dispersal. Seasonal sampling significantly influenced assemblage composition, suggesting temporal variability in propagule banks. Substrate type had no significant effect, implying that water variables like temperature or salinity play a stronger role in shaping foraminiferal communities. The experimental setups favored small, fast-growing species tolerant of high organic content, underscoring the potential of propagule banks as resilient species reservoirs and refining future applications of this method.

Weinmann, A. E., Goldstein, S. T., Triantaphyllou, M. V., & Langer, M. R. (2019). Effects of sampling site, season, and substrate on foraminiferal assemblages grown from propagule banks from lagoon sediments of Corfu Island (Greece, Ionian Sea). Plos One, 14(6), e0219015. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0219015