Editing Microfossil (section)

==Marine sediments==
[[File:Distribution of sediment types on the seafloor.png|thumb|upright=1.8|right| {{center|'''Distribution of sediment types on the seafloor'''<br /> Within each colored area, the type of material shown is what dominates, although other materials are also likely to be present.<br /><small>For further information, [https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Historical_Geology/Marine_sediments see here]</small>}}]]
[[File:Carbonate-Silicate Cycle (Carbon Cycle focus).jpg|thumb|upright=1.8|right|{{center|[[Carbonate-silicate cycle]]}}]]

{{main|Marine sediments}}
{{further|Paleoceanography|Paleoclimatology|Marine isotope stage}}

Sediments at the bottom of the ocean have two main origins, terrigenous and biogenous.

[[Terrigenous sediment]]s account for about 45% of the total marine sediment, and originate in the erosion of [[Rock (geology)|rocks]] on land, transported by rivers and land runoff, windborne dust, volcanoes, or grinding by glaciers.

===Biogenous===
[[Biogenous sediment]]s account for the other 55% of the total sediment, and originate in the skeletal remains of [[#Marine protists|marine protists]] (single-celled plankton and benthos microorganisms). Much smaller amounts of precipitated minerals and meteoric dust can also be present. ''Ooze'', in the context of a marine sediment, does not refer to the consistency of the sediment but to its biological origin. The term ooze was originally used by [[John Murray (oceanographer)|John Murray]], the "father of modern oceanography", who proposed the term ''radiolarian ooze'' for the silica deposits of radiolarian shells brought to the surface during the [[Challenger expedition]].<ref>Thomson, Charles Wyville (2014) [https://books.google.com/books?id=zcFkAwAAQBAJ&q=radiolarian+ooze ''Voyage of the Challenger : The Atlantic''] Cambridge University Press, page235. 
{{ISBN|9781108074759}}.</ref> A ''biogenic ooze'' is a [[pelagic sediment]] containing at least 30 per cent from the skeletal remains of marine organisms.

* [[Diatomaceous earth]]
* [[Siliceous ooze]]
* [[Kerogen]]
** [[Alginite]]

===Lithified===
{{further|sedimentary rock}}

<gallery mode="packed" heights="160px" style="float:left;">
File:Coober Pedy Opal Doublet.jpg| Opal can include microfossil diatoms, radiolarians, [[silicoflagellate]]s and [[Ebriid|ebridians]]<ref name=Haq1998>Haq B.U. and Boersma A. (Eds.) (1998) [https://books.google.com/books?id=0XezCm7IwpUC&q=%22Introduction+to+Marine+Micropaleontology%22 ''Introduction to Marine Micropaleontology''] Elsevier. {{ISBN|9780080534961}}</ref>
File:MarmoCipollino FustoBasMassenzioRoma.jpg| Marble can contain microfossil foraminiferans, coccolithophores, [[calcareous nannoplankton]] and algae, [[ostracode]]s, [[pteropod]]s, calpionellids and [[bryozoa]]{{hsp}}<ref name=Haq1998 />|alt=Marble can contain microfossil foraminiferans, coccolithophores, calcareous nannoplankton and algae, ostracodes, pteropods, calpionellids and bryozoa
</gallery>

[[File:Marine sediment thickness (cropped).jpg|thumb|upright=1.8|right| {{center|Thickness of marine sediments}}]]

[[File:Ötzi the Iceman - Dagger 2.png|thumb|upright=1.6|left| Stone dagger of [[Ötzi|Ötzi the Iceman]] who lived during the [[Copper Age]]. The blade is made of [[chert]] containing radiolarians, calcispheres, calpionellids and a few sponge spicules. The presence of [[calpionellids]], which are extinct, was used to date this dagger.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Wierer | first1 = U. | last2 = Arrighi | first2 = S. | last3 = Bertola | first3 = S. | last4 = Kaufmann | first4 = G. | last5 = Baumgarten | first5 = B. | last6 = Pedrotti | first6 = A. | last7 = Pernter | first7 = P. | last8 = Pelegrin | first8 = J. | year = 2018 | title = The Iceman's lithic toolkit: Raw material, technology, typology and use | journal = PLOS ONE | volume = 13 | issue = 6| page = e0198292 | doi = 10.1371/journal.pone.0198292 | pmid = 29924811 | pmc = 6010222 | bibcode = 2018PLoSO..1398292W | doi-access = free }}</ref>]]

[[File:Marine-microfossils hg.jpg|thumb|upright=1|center| {{center|Some marine microfossils}}]]

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