Modern distribution of salt marsh foraminifera and thecamoebians in the Seymour-Belize Inlet Complex, British Columbia, Canada

Foraminifera and thecamoebian distribution along two marsh transects, in the Waump (WIR 16) and Wawwat'l (WIR 12) Indian Reserves, in the Seymour-Belize Inlet Complex, north coastal British Columbia were investigated. Based on Q- and R-mode cluster analysis of the faunal distributions three high abundance, low diversity faunal assemblages were identified; the Freshwater, Brackish and High Salt Marsh Assemblages. The Freshwater Assemblage is dominated by the soil thecamoebian species Cyclopyxis kahli, a significant presence of centropyxids and Nebela collaris. The Brackish Assemblage is characterized by abundant centropyxids and less than 10% foraminifera. The High Salt Marsh Assemblage is characterized by the dominance of Balticammina pseudomacrescens. The results of this study show the high potential of combined thecamoebian/foraminifera analyses for paleo-sea level research under lower salinity marsh conditions.