Globigerina

Globigerina Temporal range: Late Eocene - Recent.
Illustration of Globigerina ooze
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Rhizaria
Superphylum:	Retaria
Phylum:	Foraminifera
Order:	Globigerinida
Family:	Globigerinidae
Genus:	Globigerina d'Orbigny, 1826

Globigerina is a genus of planktonic Foraminifera that have populated the world's oceans since the Late Eocene.

Globigerina ooze

Vast areas of the ocean floor are covered with Globigerina ooze, dominated by the foraminiferous shells of Globigerina and other Globigerinida. The name was originally applied to mud collected from the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean when planning the location of the first transatlantic telegraph cables, which turned out to be mainly composed of the shells of Globigerina bulloides.

Description

Globigerina has a globose, trochospirally enrolled test composed of spherical to ovate but not radially elongate chambers that enlarge rapidly as added, commonly with only three to five in the final whorl. The test (or shell) wall is calcareous, perforate, with cylindrical pores. During life the surface has numerous long slender spines that are broken on dead or fossil shells, the short blunt remnants resulting in a hispid surface. The aperture a high umbilical arch that may be bordered by an imperforate rim or narrow lip. No secondary apertures.

Species

Globigeria includes the following species (extinct species marked with a dagger, †)

• Globigerina bulloides d'Orbigny, 1826
• Globigerina compacta Hofker, 1956 †
• Globigerina cretacea d'Orbigny, 1840 †
• Globigerina dubia Egger, 1857 †
• Globigerina falconensis Blow, 1959
• Globigerina hexagona atland, 1938
• Globigerina paratriloculinoides Hofker, 1956 †
• Globigerina paravenezuelana Hofker, 1956 †
• Globigerina protoreticulata Hofker, 1956 †
• Globigerina pseudocretacea Hofker, 1956 †
• Globigerina stainforthi Hofker, 1956 †
• Globigerina supracretacea Hofker, 1956 †

References

• Alfred R. Loeblich, Jr. and Helen Tappan, 1964. Sarcodina Chiefly "Thecamoebians" and Foraminiferida; Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology, Part C Protista 2. Geological Society of America and University of Kansas Press.
• __ and __,1988. Forminiferal Genera and their Classification. [1] GSI E-book
• Bruce Hayward & Onno Gross (2012) Globigerina d'Orbigny, 1826 World Modern Foraminifera Database. WoRMS April 11, 2012