UCB Moorea Class: Biology and Geomorphology of Tropical Islands

Foraminifera are known to occur in fouling communities, but no extensive studies of foraminifera assemblages on these communities exist. We know little about the differences (if any) in the succession, diversity, distribution, and selective strategies of foraminifera found in fouling communities, and nothing at all has been documented about the foraminifera in fouling communities on Moorea, French Polynesia. This study examined foraminifera assemblages in fouling communities of three substrates on Moorea (cement, plastic, and metal). An experiment on the succession of foraminifera over the course of four weeks on submerged steel fouling tiles was also conducted. Hierarchical cluster analysis determined that forams in fouling communities do not show a preference for metal, plastic, or cement substrate, and that foram assemblages in fouling communities on the island are similar, regardless of their locality around Moorea. Succession followed a typical trend, but may have been accelerated by disturbance.