Editing Foraminifera (section)

{{short description|Phylum of amoeboid protists}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2022}}
{{automatic taxobox
| fossil_range = {{fossil range|542|0|ref=<ref name="Parfrey2011">{{cite Q|Q24614721}}</ref>}} Latest [[Ediacaran]]–Recent
| image = Ammonia tepida.jpg
| image_caption = Live ''[[Ammonia tepida]]'' (Rotaliida)
| taxon = Foraminifera
| authority = [[Alcide d'Orbigny|d'Orbigny]], 1826
| subdivision_ranks = Subdivisions
| subdivision = "[[Monothalamea]]"
* "[[Allogromiida]]"
* "[[Astrorhizida]]"
* [[Xenophyophorea]]
* ''[[Reticulomyxa]]''
[[Tubothalamea]]
* [[Miliolida]]
* [[Spirillinida]]
* [[Silicoloculinida]]
[[Globothalamea]]
* [[Textulariida]]
* [[Rotaliida]]
** [[Globigerinida]]
* [[Carterinida]]
* [[Robertinida]]
* [[Fusulinida]]? – ''extinct''

''incertae sedis''
* [[Involutinida]]
* [[Lagenida]]
}}

'''Foraminifera''' ({{IPAc-en|f|ə|ˌ|r|æ|m|ə|ˈ|n|ɪ|f|ə|r|ə}} {{respelling|fə|RAM|ə|NIH|fə|rə}}; [[Latin]] for "hole bearers"; informally called "'''forams'''") are [[unicellular organism|single-celled organisms]], members of a [[phylum]] or [[class (biology)|class]] of [[Rhizaria]]n [[protist]]s characterized by streaming granular [[Ectoplasm (cell biology)|ectoplasm]] for catching food and other uses; and commonly an external shell (called a "[[Test (biology)|test]]") of diverse forms and materials. Tests of [[chitin]] (found in some simple genera, and ''[[Textularia]]'' in particular) are believed to be the most primitive type. Most foraminifera are marine, the majority of which live on or within the [[seafloor sediment]] (i.e., are [[benthos|benthic]], with different sized species playing a role within the [[macrobenthos]], [[meiobenthos]], and [[Benthos|microbenthos]]),<ref>{{Citation|last1=Binczewska|first1=Anna|title=Foraminifers (Benthic)|date=2014|url=https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6644-0_60-1|encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Marine Geosciences|pages=1–8|editor-last=Harff|editor-first=Jan|place=Dordrecht|publisher=Springer Netherlands|language=en|doi=10.1007/978-94-007-6644-0_60-1|isbn=978-94-007-6644-0|access-date=2021-05-13|last2=Polovodova Asteman|first2=Irina|last3=Farmer|first3=Elizabeth J.|editor2-last=Meschede|editor2-first=Martin|editor3-last=Petersen|editor3-first=Sven|editor4-last=Thiede|editor4-first=Jörn|url-access=subscription}}</ref> while a smaller number float in the water column at various depths (i.e., are [[plankton]]ic), which belong to the suborder [[Globigerinina]].<ref>{{Citation|last=Kimoto|first=Katsunori|title=Planktic Foraminifera|date=2015|url=https://doi.org/10.1007/978-4-431-55130-0_7|work=Marine Protists: Diversity and Dynamics|pages=129–178|editor-last=Ohtsuka|editor-first=Susumu|place=Tokyo|publisher=Springer Japan|language=en|doi=10.1007/978-4-431-55130-0_7|isbn=978-4-431-55130-0|access-date=2021-05-13|editor2-last=Suzaki|editor2-first=Toshinobu|editor3-last=Horiguchi|editor3-first=Takeo|editor4-last=Suzuki|editor4-first=Noritoshi|url-access=subscription}}</ref> Fewer are known from freshwater<ref>{{Cite journal|date=2017-08-01|title=Taxonomic revision of freshwater foraminifera with the description of two new agglutinated species and genera|journal=European Journal of Protistology|language=en|volume=60|pages=28–44|doi=10.1016/j.ejop.2017.05.006|issn=0932-4739|last1=Siemensma|first1=Ferry|last2=Apothéloz-Perret-Gentil|first2=Laure|last3=Holzmann|first3=Maria|last4=Clauss|first4=Steffen|last5=Völcker|first5=Eckhard|last6=Pawlowski|first6=Jan|pmid=28609684|doi-access=free}}</ref> or brackish<ref>{{Citation|last1=Boltovskoy|first1=Esteban|title=Benthonic Foraminifera of Brackish, Hypersaline, Ultrasaline, and Fresh Waters|date=1976|url=https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-2860-7_5|work=Recent Foraminifera|pages=139–150|editor-last=Boltovskoy|editor-first=Esteban|place=Dordrecht|publisher=Springer Netherlands|language=en|doi=10.1007/978-94-017-2860-7_5|isbn=978-94-017-2860-7|access-date=2021-05-13|last2=Wright|first2=Ramil|editor2-last=Wright|editor2-first=Ramil|url-access=subscription}}</ref> conditions, and some very few (nonaquatic) soil species have been identified through molecular analysis of small subunit [[ribosomal DNA]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Giere|first=Olav|title=Meiobenthology: the microscopic motile fauna of aquatic sediments|year=2009|publisher=Springer|location=Berlin|isbn=978-3540686576|edition=2nd }}</ref><ref name="Lej">{{cite journal|last1=Lejzerowicz|first1=Franck |last2=Pawlowski |first2=Jan |last3=Fraissinet-Tachet |first3=Laurence |last4=Marmeisse |first4=Roland |title=Molecular evidence for widespread occurrence of Foraminifera in soils|journal=Environmental Microbiology|date=1 September 2010|volume=12|issue=9|pages=2518–26|doi=10.1111/j.1462-2920.2010.02225.x |pmid=20406290|bibcode=2010EnvMi..12.2518L |s2cid=20940138 }}</ref>

Foraminifera typically produce a [[test (biology)|test]], or shell, which can have either one or multiple chambers, some becoming quite elaborate in structure.<ref name=Kennett>{{cite book |first1=J.P. |last1=Kennett |first2=M.S. |last2=Srinivasan |title=Neogene planktonic foraminifera: a phylogenetic atlas |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wr4TAQAAIAAJ |year=1983 |publisher=Hutchinson Ross |isbn=978-0-87933-070-5}}</ref> These shells are commonly made of [[calcium carbonate]] ({{chem|CaCO|3}}) or [[agglutination (biology)|agglutinated]] sediment particles. Over 50,000 species are recognized, both living (6,700–10,000)<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Pawlowski|first1=J.|last2=Lejzerowicz|first2=F.|last3=Esling|first3=P.|date=2014-10-01|title=Next-Generation Environmental Diversity Surveys of Foraminifera: Preparing the Future|url=https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/BBLv227n2p93|journal=The Biological Bulletin|volume=227|issue=2|pages=93–106|doi=10.1086/BBLv227n2p93|pmid=25411369|s2cid=24388876|issn=0006-3185}}</ref><ref name="adl2007">Ald, S.M. ''et al''. (2007) [https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20110331223739/http://myweb.dal.ca/jmarchib/2007.Adl.Syst.biol.pdf Diversity, Nomenclature, and Taxonomy of Protists], ''Syst. Biol.'' 56(4), 684–689, DOI: 10.1080/10635150701494127.</ref> and [[fossil]] (40,000).<ref>Pawlowski, J., Lejzerowicz, F., & Esling, P. (2014). [http://www.biolbull.org/content/227/2/93.long Next-generation environmental diversity surveys of foraminifera: preparing the future]. The Biological Bulletin, 227(2), 93-106.</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=World Foraminifera Database|url=http://www.marinespecies.org/foraminifera/}}</ref> They are usually less than 1&nbsp;mm in size, but some are much larger, the [[Xenophyophore|largest species]] reaching up to 20&nbsp;cm.<ref>{{cite news |author=Marshall M |title=Zoologger: 'Living beach ball' is giant single cell |newspaper=[[New Scientist]] |date=3 February 2010 |url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn18468}}</ref>

In modern scientific English, the term ''foraminifera'' is both singular and plural (irrespective of the word's [[Latin]] derivation), and is used to describe one or more specimens or taxa: its usage as singular or plural must be determined from context. Foraminifera is frequently used informally to describe the group, and in these cases is generally lowercase.<ref name=Lipps2011>{{cite journal|url=http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/people/klf/Lipps2011.pdf|access-date=10 April 2018 |title=What Should We call the Foraminifera |vauthors=Lipps JH, Finger KL, Walker SE |journal=Journal of Foraminiferal Research |volume=41 |issue=4 |pages=309–313 |date=October 2011|doi=10.2113/gsjfr.41.4.309 |bibcode=2011JForR..41..309L }}</ref>