Bull 629 BULLETIN OF THE IRAQ NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM Alsalameen and Dakrory Bull. Iraq nat. Hist. Mus. (2023) 17(4): 629-653. https://doi.org/10.26842/binhm.7.2023.17.4.0629 ORIGINAL ARTICLE APPLICATION OF BENTHIC FORAMINIFERA IN POLLUTION ASSESSMENT AT MISKAN ISLAND AND AL-KHIRAN COASTLINE, KUWAIT M. A. Alsalameen*♦ and A. M. Dakrory** *The Public Authority for Applied Education and Training, College of Basic Education, Science Department, Kuwait. **Minia University, Faculty of Science, Geology Department, Minia, Egypt. ♦Corresponding author E-mail: mailto:ma.alsalameen@paaet.edu.kw Recived Date: 03 March 2023, Accepted Date: 01 August 2023, Published Date:20 December 2023 This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License ABSTRACT The biodiversity of benthic foraminifera around the coral communities and the concentration of heavy elements (e.g., Mn, Fe, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn, Cd, and Co) in Miskan Island and Al-Khiran coastline of Kuwait are used as an ecological indicator for the environmental and anthropogenic stresses occurred from February 2018 to February 2019. The study resulted in identifying 19 families, 6 orders, 29 genera, and 94 species. Using R- mode cluster analysis results in four assemblages and using Q-mode principal component analysis (PCA) distinguished three groups depending on the deep. The three main assemblages refer to different depths, Group A from 20 cm to 1 m depth; Group B from 1.5 to 2 m depth, Group C from 6 to 8 m depth. Al-Khiran coastline is characterized by anoxic conditions, confirmed by the existence of pyrite. Additionally, high water turbidity because of anthropogenic effects. The low number of benthic foraminifera on Miskan Island is due to the dissolution and calcification of foraminifera shells. The Island characterized by freshwater runoff from Iraq meets saltwater in the gulf, affecting the salinity. The turbidity is caused by sediment runoff and eutrophication. Both sites were considered relatively unpolluted compared with the nearest Iranian coast. However, the relatively high potentially toxic elements in some locations are due to the semi-restricted geographic characteristic and high anthropogenic activity. There is no clear abnormality in the identified species showing normal aperture, coiling, shape, and size. Keywords: Benthic Foraminifera, Biodiversity, Environment, Heavy Metals, Kuwait Pollution. INTRODUCTION Benthic foraminifera are abundant in the bottom sediments of coastal ecosystems and have a short reproductive cycle (Murray, 2006, 2014). Thus, they are highly sensitive to environmental changes (Koukousioura et al., 2011; El-Kahawy et al., 2018). Benthic foraminiferal assemblages are considered one of the principal and significant tools to BULLETIN OF THE IRAQ NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM Iraq Natural History Research Center & Museum, University of Baghdad https://jnhm.uobaghdad.edu.iq/index.php/BINHM/Home Copyright © Bulletin of the Iraq Natural History Museum Online ISSN: 2311-9799-Print ISSN: 1017-8678 https://doi.org/10.26842/binhm.7.2023.17.4.0629 mailto:ma.alsalameen@paaet.edu.kw https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://jnhm.uobaghdad.edu.iq/index.php/BINHM/Home 630 BULLETIN OF THE IRAQ NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM Application of benthic foraminifera understand the environmental changes, stressors, and conflicts recorded in marine environments (Bouchet et al., 2012, 2018, 2020), and used as indicators of climate change and global variability to monitor environmental changes (Charrieau et al., 2017; Sreenivasulu et al., 2019). A recent benthic foraminifer and its ecology in the Persian Gulf and the Kuwaiti Territories have been extensively studied by many authors (e.g., Cherif et al., 1997; Al-Zamel et al., 1998; Al-Zamel et al., 2009; Al-Enezi and Frontalini, 2015, Arslan et al., 2016; Amao et al., 2018a; Al-Enezi et al., 2019, 2020). Additionally, the composition of benthic populations, morphological characteristics, diversity, and distribution of species provide valuable data on water salinity, temperature, substrate characteristics, climate, changes in sea level, oxygen, and nutrient availability. In this regard, this work provides insight into the usefulness of benthic foraminifera for environmental regeneration. Benthic foraminifera are useful bio- indicators for potentially toxic elements (PTE) (e.g., Alve, 1995; Nigam et al., 2006). In contaminated areas, the benthic foraminifera can exhibit a variety of morphological distortions and changes in population composition and species richness (Kurbjeweit et al., 2000; du Chatelet et al., 2004). Sedimentation rates of bottom sediments in the Arabian Gulf showed marked regional differences depending on offshore morphology and sediment type. Bay bottom sediments vary from natural limestone fragments of biological origin and rock fragments derived from beach rocks and submerged coral reefs to allochthonous terrigenous debris brought to the area mainly by storm dust and river deltas in the remote northern regions and along eastern Iran (Khalaf et al., 1984). The Miskan Island and Al-Khiran coastlines are part of the Arabian Gulf, which is considered a semi-restricted area and allows the precipitation of pollution in some areas. Therefore, the distribution and characteristics of the benthic foraminifera and the heavy metal geochemistry from these localities can be used to trace the environmental and climate changes in this part of the world. The main objectives of this study are to (a) study the distribution of foraminifera assemblages and diversity in two localities (Miskan Island and Al-Kiran coastline), (b) identify the benthic foraminiferal assemblage to the species level, (c) distribution of monitor, major and trace (Fe, Mn, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn, Co, and Cd) in the study areas, and (d) interpret the environmental factors controlling the distribution and species richness of benthic foraminifera. MATERIALS AND METHODS Two localities, including 8 stations and 35 samples at Miskan Island to the north and the Al-Khiran coastline to the south have been studied (Map 1) to achieve the objective of this work. Miskan Island: Miskan is a small-uninhabited island in the Persian (Arabian) Gulf (Kuwait territorial waters). It is located south of Bubiyan Island (Map 1). It is about 1.2 km long and 800 meters in width (about 0.75 km² area). The study area is bounded by latitude 29° 29′ 9″ N and longitude 48° 15′ 5″ E, about 3.2 km from Failaka Island. It contains medium to coarse coastal sand with coral reefs at specific depths of about 7-13 m in some places around the 631 BULLETIN OF THE IRAQ NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM Alsalameen and Dakrory island. The northwestern part of the bay is considered a low salinity zone because most of the river's flow into the bay occurs at the northern end, mainly on the Iranian side. The Gulf receives freshwater inflows from the Euphrates and Tigris rivers in Iraq as well as numerous small seasonal streams flowing through Mount Zagros in Iran (Alsharhan and Kendall, 2003). The Shatt Al-Arab Plain forms the northwest coast and many rivers along the Zagros Mountains. Many terrigenous sediments greatly influence the sediments of the Gulf (Alsharhan and Kendall 2003). Several rivers originating in the Zagros Mountains flow into the bay and are characterized by frequent flash floods, among them the Shatt Al- Arab, which pours mud and fine sand. Salinity values gradually increase southward and decrease at Shatt Al-Arab due to dilution from freshwater input (Sheppard et al., 2010; Riegel et al., 2013). Al-Khiran coastline: The Al-Khiran area is in the southern part of Kuwait, about 100 km south of Kuwait City, on the coast of the Persian Gulf, which is part of a shallow plateau in Western Mesopotamia. It is bounded by latitudes 28°32'05" to 28°45'N and longitudes 48°15'00" to 48°26'06" E (Map 1). Al-Khiran has a great ecological significance and potential for environmental monitoring and analysis in highly variable environments. Map (1): Location map for study stations (*). 632 BULLETIN OF THE IRAQ NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM Application of benthic foraminifera Field work: Foraminiferal species at bottom sediments and around some coral reefs were collected during several field trips in February 2018 and 2019 from the Miskan Island and Al- Khiran coastlines from the tidal and intertidal zones at depths between 20 cm and 8 m away from turbidity. A grape sampler was used for the sampling of bottom sediments (sand or silt). Each sample was divided into two parts, one for the foraminifera analysis and the other for the sediment analysis. Samples have been transferred into plastic bags and frozen at -4 ᴼC immediately after the sampling to avoid contamination, ecological variables changing, and chemical volatiles. The number of living foraminifera at each locality was used to calculate the indices of species richness (S), dominance (D), Shannon-Wiener (H′) and homogeneity (e^H/S) using the PAST v3.12 software package (Hammer et al., 2001). Principal component analysis (PCA) using single value decomposition and hierarchical clustering (HCPC) using Ward's agglomeration and Euclidean distance have been applied to the sample station’s data. Laboratory Analyses : To separate the different foraminiferal taxa, the top 10 cm3 of the first split from the collected sediments were socked in a rose Bengal solution (2 g/l ethanol) for 2 days to distinguish live from dead foraminifera, then washed and sieved using a 63-μm mesh. The dry residue was divided by an Otto-Micro-splitter into fractions of which one part (1/4 or 1/8) was fully counted. Sediment samples were placed under normal tap water for one hour for cleaning using a 63-μm sieve. Part of the samples was dried at 50˚C in an oven for this group analysis. Sand fractions were weighed to assess the foraminifera assemblage. The members of this taxon were separated from the top 2 cm of twenty grams of dry-cleaned sediments using a reflected light microscope with magnifications between 40X and 180X. Separated foraminifera taxa were preserved in 70 % Rose Bengal ethanol solution to prevent the degradation of protoplasm and to facilitate the separation of a live (stained) and dead (unstained) cells. Geochemistry of the Sediments: Bulk sediments (5 g) from the Miskan Island and Al- Khiran coastlines were dried under a light bulb at low temperatures to avoid heavy metal evaporation. The samples were pulverized to a size of 64µm and analyzed by the Research Field Project Unit (RSPU) of the University of Kuwait for the potentially toxic elements (PTEs) content (23 elements, particularly As, Al, Fe Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, V, Ni, Hg, Pb and Zn) by inductive plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) using a modified US EPA 3050 preparation protocol. The distribution of heavy metals in the studied samples was influenced by texture, clay minerals, organic matter, iron oxyhydroxide, manganese, and calcium carbonate (Salmons and Forshtner, 1984). Grain-Size Analysis: Grain-size analysis was performed using dry and wet sieving techniques (Poppe et al., 2000). Approximately 20 g of each sample was carefully weighed and sieved with 1 liter of distilled water on a 63-μm grid. The filtrate was added to 1-liter decanting tubes, and 20 ml (50 g/l) sodium hexametaphosphate was used as the dispersant for each tube to determine the sludge and clay fractions. The residue was then dried and sieved by different mesh sizes. The filtrate was then analyzed for mud and clay contents using the 633 BULLETIN OF THE IRAQ NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM Alsalameen and Dakrory method of Poppe et al. (2000). GRADISTAT software was used to determine the grain size distribution and predominant sediment types (Blott and Pye, 2001). Dried samples were sieved using 63 μm, 100 μm, 125 μm, 150 μm, 200 μm, 225 μm, and 250 μm mesh sieves to separate different sizes. Samples were separated into a mud fraction (< 63 μm) and a sand fraction (> 63 μm). Statistical Studies: Three hundred living specimens of foraminifera from 10 cm3 sediments were picked out of the > 125-micron fraction. Samples were divided, and counts have been calculated for all samples. For quantitative analysis, the number of benthic foraminifera was calculated per individual (>125 µm) in the dry sediment to determine diversity. Diversity was determined using the Shannon-Wiener information equation (Buzas and Gibson, 1969). The Shannon diversity measures the order (or disorder) observed within a particular system (Hayek and Buzas, 1997). The first set of analyses determined groups of sample sites based on their similarity to foraminifera assemblages. H (S) = -1 Ʃ pi ln pi (1) H(S) represents diversity, S is the number of species observed, and pi is the species ratio. The classification concept in this study is mainly based on Abbachar and Kuhnt (1994), Shannon index rule, H (Shannon and Weaver, 1949) and Fisher’s alpha index (Fisher et al., 1943) were used to determine species number (richness). S= ln (1 + n/ ) S= the number of Taxa N= total number of individuals = total number of individuals Evenness E as eH′/S calculated after Buzas and Gibson (1969). E= evenness/uniformity index H= index of Shannon- Wiener S= the number of taxa Taxon dominance was determined using the dominance index (D). The dominance index was calculated according to the Simpson (1949) equation. D= 2 D= Dominance Index ni= number of individual species I n= total number of individuals All calculations were made and performed using PAST4 v.1.0.0. (Hammer et al., 2001) and Statistical Package (SPSS, 22) and repeated twice for accuracy and to minimize bias (Hammer et al., 2001). All data were tested for normality using the Kolomogorvo-Smirnov test. The adopted significance level was 95% (α=0.05). Clustering and principal component analyses (PCA) are based on the ward methods, and Euclidean analysis was used as an exploratory analysis to investigate the relationships between foraminifera groups and to investigate the community of the foraminifera assemblage using multiple variables prior to data analysis. The Euclidean method was used to construct the square root transform 634 BULLETIN OF THE IRAQ NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM Application of benthic foraminifera similarity matrices. This variation underestimates the importance of species being so abundant that similarities depend not only on their values but also on the values of "average" species. Based on this similarity matrix, Q-mode cluster analysis and histograms were constructed. Systematic Classification of the Foraminifera: To identify and classify the foraminifera, the sand fractions (> 63 μm) were investigated by the microscope to check the presence of foraminifera (Hallock et al., 2003). Then, each sample was examined under the conventional stereo microscope, and the probe was removed with a fine artist's brush moistened with water. Individual specimens were placed on a wildlife cardboard microbiology slide, coated with a thin layer of water-soluble glue. The taxonomic identification of foraminifera was carried out following the monographs of Cimerman and Langer (1991), Hottinger et al. (1993), Loeblich and Tappan (1988, 1994), Cherif et al. (1997), Hayward et al. (2004), Parker (2009), and Amao et al. (2016; 2018 a, b; 2019). RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Statistical Data Analysis Ninety-four species of foraminifera belonging to 19 families, 6 orders, and 29 genera were identified from the superficial sediments (upper 2-10 cm) of the Miskan Island and Al- Khiran coastline. There is no coastlines clear abnormality in our study species. Most of the species show normal aperture, coiling, shape, and size (Diags. 1-6). The wall types, with decreasing abundance, are transparent (61%), porcelain (32%), and agglomerate (7%). The most abundant genera are Quinqueloculina, (6.2%), Adelosina (6 %), Spiroloculina (5.8. %), Asterorotalia (4.1%), Triloculina (3.2 %), Elphidium (2.9%), Ammonia (2.1%), Textularia (1.9%). Richness (S) reached a maximum of 97 genera on SW Miskan Island and a minimum of 71 genera on the Al-Khiran coastline (Tab. 1). Evenness ranged from 0.83 at Miskan to 0.68 at the Alkhiran coastline. Miskan Stations Al-Khiran Stations S o u th w es t M is k n (S M 1 ) (M ) E at M is k an M is k an L o w T id e (L T -M - 3 ) S 4 a- K h (S 4 b -K h ) (S 5 a- K h ) S 5 b -K h A l- K h ir an B ea ch S 6 Symbols Used in PCA B C D E F G H I Depth (m) 6 8 1.75 2 1.5 1 0.5 0.2 Taxa_S 97 95 87 86 84 77 78 71 Individuals 1868 2175 1326 868 763 426 472 318 Dominance_D 0.01348 0.01407 0.01424 0.01487 0.01627 0.02116 0.02154 0.02646 Simpson_1-D 0.9865 0.9859 0.9858 0.9851 0.9837 0.9788 0.9785 0.9735 Shannon_H 4.389 4.345 4.329 4.304 4.249 4.071 4.062 3.888 Evenness_e^H /S 0.8307 0.8114 0.8723 0.8605 0.8338 0.7615 0.7445 0.6875 Table (1): Diversity indices. 635 BULLETIN OF THE IRAQ NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM Alsalameen and Dakrory R-mode clustering analysis of the most abundant species revealed three groups related to depth (Diag. 1). Principal Component Analysis (PCA) suggested that 85.94% of the total variability among the dataset, 76.5% (axis 1-PC1), and 9.3% (axis 2-PC2) on the variability (Diag. 2), indicating a clear separation between the groups (Tabs. 2, 3). A high number of foraminifera have been observed in the sandy fractions of the investigated sediments. In contrast, a low number was associated with the silt fractions of the investigated sediments, which is consistent with the observations of Barbosa et al. (2009). Table (2): PC Score showing eigenvalue and variance. Table (3): Final PC score. PC 1 PC 2 PC 3 PC 4 PC 5 PC 6 PC 7 PC 8 B 0.52554 0.014051 -0.18153 0.20312 -0.74075 0.078751 -0.30552 0.033735 C 0.66561 -0.29537 -0.44665 -0.18886 0.45525 -0.005383 0.16464 -0.012529 D 0.37845 -0.020806 0.60764 0.47361 0.29543 -0.33605 -0.21343 -0.13057 E 0.24031 -0.1435 0.51626 -0.12875 -0.22272 0.35639 0.66286 0.15018 F 0.21896 0.37013 0.30979 -0.68219 0.10139 0.21379 -0.44098 -0.057106 G 0.12343 0.44896 -0.046626 -0.16829 -0.093845 -0.65325 0.26293 0.49802 H 0.11337 0.60556 -0.14713 0.13707 -0.007216 0.045436 0.35648. -0.67143 I 0.061318 0.43159 -0.10956 0.41195 0.29667 0.5285 -0.062773 0.50695 Relative Abundances of the Foraminifera: The absolute number of foraminifera per gram of graded bulk sediments was used in this work. Generate multiple statistics for each genus that contribute to >90% similarity within each group or differences between groups. The results included mean abundance, mean similarity and standard deviation similarity ratio, percent contribution, and cumulative percentage contribution of each genus. Miliolida and Rotaliida are the major recorded orders in the studied localities (Tab. 4, Diag. 3). The recorded species and lower number of benthic foraminifers (Tab. 5), was indicated that the Al-Khiran coastline is characterized by anoxic conditions. The relative abundance of framboidal pyrite in the Miskan Island also indicates these low oxygen conditions. The Rotalina is the most abundant suborder on the Al-Khiran coastline, whereas the Textulariina has the lowest percentage. The low number of foraminifera in the Miskan Island is due to the dissolution of shells. Freshwater runoff from Iraq meets saltwater in the Gulf, which causes or affects the salinity and calcite materials of the shells. Equitability_J 0.9595 0.9541 0.9694 0.9663 0.959 0.9373 0.9323 0.9121 Fisher_alpha 21.72 20.28 20.88 23.71 24.09 27.46 26.62 28.38 PC Eigenvalue % Variance 1 388.639 76.555 2 47.6935 9.3947 3 30.1968 5.9482 4 13.9465 2.7472 5 10.1134 1.9922 6 6.98167 1.3753 7 5.89753 1.1617 8 4.19359 0.82606 636 BULLETIN OF THE IRAQ NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM Application of benthic foraminifera Diagram (1): Hierarchical of R-mode cluster analysis (Ward's method, Euclidean distances as a similarity index) based on the total abundance of the recorded foraminifera species higher than 5%. A A1 C B A2 B2 B1 D D1 D2 637 BULLETIN OF THE IRAQ NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM Alsalameen and Dakrory Diagram (2): PCA factor plan, variables Component (PC1 vs PC2). Table (4): Identified benthic foraminifera taxa (Order, Family, Genus, and Species) distribution. Order Family Genus Species Astrohizida Rhabdamminidae Bathysiphon Bathysiphon sp. Bathysiphon filiformis Sars, 1872 Lituolida Litiolidae Ammobaculites Ammobaculites agglutinans (d,Orbigny, 1826) Miliolida Cornuspiridae Cornouspira Cornuspira planorbis (Schultze, 1854) Cribrolinoididae Adelosina Adeloisina echinate (d,Orbigny, 1826) A. elegans (Williamson, 1858) A. duthiersi (Schlumberger, 1886) A. granulocostata (Germeraad, 1946) A. intricate (Terquem, 1878) A. laevigata (d'Orbigny, 1826) A. mediterranensis (Le Calvez & Le Calvez, 1958) A. partschi (d,Orbigny, 1846) A. pullchella (d,Orbigny, 1846) A. bicornis (Walker & Jacob, 1798) A. cliarensis (Heron-Allen & Earland, 1930) A. sidebottomi (Rasheed, 1971) A. crassicarinata (Collins, 1958) Adelosina sp. 638 BULLETIN OF THE IRAQ NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM Application of benthic foraminifera Cycloforina Cycloforina contorta (d,Orbigny,1846) Parrina Parrina bradyi (Millett, 1898) Pseudotriloculina Pseudotriloculina sidebottomi (Martinotti, 1921) Quinqueloculina Quinqueloculina disparilis (d'Orbigny, 1826) Q. tropicalis (Cushman, 1924) Q. bosciana (d,Orbigny,1846) Q. bicarinate (d,Orbigny, 1878) Q. bubiyanensis (Shublank, 1977) Q. buchiana (d,Orbigny, 1846 ) Q. crassicarinata (Collins, 1958) Q. padana (Perconig, 1954) Q. patagonica (d'Orbigny, 1839) Q. peregrina (d'Orbigny, 1878) Q. poeyana (d,Orbigny, 1846) Q. berthelotiana (d,Orbigny11839) Q.parvula Schlumberger, 1894 Q. seminula (Linnaeus, 1758) Q. venusta (Karrer, 1868) Hauerinidae Triloculina Triloculina affinis d,Orbigny, 1852 T. barnardi Rasheed, 1977 T. littoralis Collins, 1958 T. asymmetrica Said, 1949 T. rotundata d'Orbigny, 1826 T. marioni Shlumerger, 1893 T. schreiberiena d,Orbigny, 1839 T. tricarinata d,Orbigny, 1826 T. trigonula (Lamark, 1804) T. terquemiana (Brady, 1884) T. plicata Terquem, 1878 Triloculina sp. Triloculinella selene (Karrer, 1868) Peneroplidiae Peneroplis Cosinospira Peneroplis Planatus (Fishtel& Moll, 1798) P. pertusus (Forskal, 1775) Cosinospira hemprichii (Ehrenberg, 1839) 639 BULLETIN OF THE IRAQ NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM Alsalameen and Dakrory Spiroloculinidae Spiroloculina Spiroloculina angulosa (Cushman, 1917) S. depressa (d'Orbigny, 1826) S.hadai (Thalmann, 1933) S. ornata (d'Orbigny, 1839) S. pulchalla (d,Orbigny, 1848) S. nummiformis (Said, 1949) S. costigera (Terquem, 1882) S. communis )Cushman and Todd 1944) S. cymbium )d'Orbigny, 1839( S. dilitata )d,Orbigny, 1846( S. excavat )d,Orbigny, 1846( S. krumbachi )Wiesner, 1911( S. laevigata )Cushman & Todd 1944( S. nitida )d'Orbigny, 1826( S. rotundata (Williamson 1858) Spiroloculina sp. Nodosariida Nodosariidae Botuloides Botuloides pauciloculus (Zheng, 1979) Rotaliida Alabaminidae Oridorsalis Oridorsalis umbonatus (Reuss, 1851) Ammoniidae Ammonia Ammonia beccarii (Linnaeus, 1758) A.tepida (Cushman, 1926( A. umbonate (Leroy, 1944) Ammonia sp. Asterorotalia Asterorotalia dentata (Parker and Jones,1865) A. milletti (Bill et al.,1980) Challengerella Challengerella bradyi (Billmannm Hottingerand Oesterle, 1980) Bolivinitidae Bolivina Bolivina compacta (Sidebottom, 1905) Cassidulinidae Globocassiidulina Globocassidulina spherica (Eade, 1967) Cibicididae Cibicides Cibicides refulgens (Montfort 1808) C. dispars (d'Orbigny, 1839) Cibicidoides Cibicidoides subhaidingerii (Parr, 1950) Discorbidae Neoeponides Neoeponides schreibersii (d'Orbigny, 1846) Elphidiidae Cribroelphidium Cribroelphidium poeyanum (d'Orbigny, 1839) Elphidium Elphidium excavatum (Terquem, 1875) E. chipolensis (Cushman, 1920) E. margariteceum (Cushman, 1930) Pavoninidae Bifarinella Bifarinella robusta (Sidebottom, 1918) Uvigerinidae Siphouvigerina Siphouvigerina proboscidea (Schwager, 186) Textulariida Textulariidae Sahulia Sahulia barkeri (Hofker, 1978) Textularia Textularia foliacea (Heron-Allen and Earland, 1915) T. secasensis (Lalicker and McCulloch, 1940) T. oceanica (Cushman, 1932) T. gramen (d'Orbigny, 1846) 640 BULLETIN OF THE IRAQ NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM Application of benthic foraminifera Table (5): Number and percentage of species in each order Order Astrohizida Lituolida Miliolida Nodosariida Rotaliida Textularii da Total No. of species 2 1 65 1 20 5 94 Percentage (%) 2.1 1.06 69.14 1.06 21.27 5.31 100% Diagram (3): Q-mode cluster analysis of the studied samples. Dendrogram using Ward Linkage Rescaled Distance Cluster Combine Increased sediment runoff and eutrophication have increased the turbidity of the water in the Miskan to the point that benthic primary production has halted in some areas. Additionally, eutrophication has enhanced water turbidity in Al-Khiran coastline because of the anthropogenic effects of human life in this area. The total number of foraminifera around Miskan Island in the northern part of the Arabian Gulf is higher than that reported by Gischler and Lomando (2005) and Parker and Gischler (2015). This might be due to sampling duration, seawater circulation, coral reef distribution, C B A M2M.east SWM1 LowTide3 Miskan S4B S4A S6 Beach Sample Kh Kh S5B S5A 641 BULLETIN OF THE IRAQ NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM Alsalameen and Dakrory and physiochemical parameters around the island, as well as the transported foraminifera from other environments (e.g., Frontailini et al., 2017; Al-Enezi et al., 2019). Miskan foraminifera also showed badly preserved dead fauna, indicating a transportation habitat. Diversity Indices: Relative abundance, species diversity, and the number of individuals has been recorded and shown in Table (4) and Table (5). 97 and 95 species were recorded on SWM1-Miskan and East Miskan-M2, respectively and 71 species was recorded on the S6 sample in the Al-Khiran coastline. All the studied localities showed a high Shannon-H index and evenness. Dominance (D) taxon values were nearly zero in all investigated stations. Cluster Analysis: To identify genera that tend to coexist (i.e., R-mode analysis), a similarity matrix is constructed based on untransformed row-standardized generic data for all taxa present in greater than 5% of the samples (Tab. 3 and Appendices). The same percentage procedure examines the contribution of individual genera to group segregation, for the observed clustering pattern, or for the difference between a sample set (Clarke and Warwick, 2001). The same matrix-based cluster analysis plots were used to identify foraminifera assemblages. Multivariate and Euclidean-Distance analyses were conducted using Past programs and SPSS. 22 packages to explain relationships between genera. The dendrogram obtained from the R-mode HCA represents the grouping of samples according to the abundance of benthic foraminifera (Diag. 2). Distinct and high hierarchical level four major clusters (A, B, C and D) have been recognized using the R-mode clustering analysis (Diag. 2). Each of these groups was subdivided into two subgroups (i.e., A1, A2, B1, B2, C and D1, D2) that included very similar samples. The dominant species characterizing the four clusters were recognized using the species distribution index of the Arabian Gulf area and worldwide. Cluster A: Cluster A includes two subclusters, namely, A1 and A2. Assemblage A1 is dominance by Cosinospira hemprichii, Elphidium margariteceum, E. chipolensis, Triloculina sp., T. Rotunda, T. tricarinata, T. terqueemiana, T. marioni, T. schreiberiana, T. selene, T. plicata, Peneroplis planatus, Neoeponides schreibersii, Cribroelphidium poeyamum. Assemblage A2 is dominated by Bolivina compacta, Cibicidoides subhreibersii, Textularia secasensis, T. oceanica, T. foliacea, T. gramen, Botuloides pauciloculus, Bathysiphon sp., B. filiformis, Bifarinella robusta, Pseudotriloculina sidebottomi, Ammonia beccarii, A. tepida, Ammonia sp., A. umbonate, Ammobaculites agglutinaus, Sahulia barkeri, Parrina bradyi, Cribroelphidium sp., Cibicidoides sp. and Globocassidulina spherica These species were reported to be intolerant of environmental stress, especially bottom oxygen deficiency (van der Zwaan, 1983). Bolivina species have shallow microhabitats in the fauna and are adapted to live in low oxygen-depleted environments in the bottom and interstitial waters, and with moderate eutrophication (Murray, 1991; Schmiedl et al., 2003). Cluster B: Assemblage B1 of this cluster includes Spiroloculina nummiformis, S. hadai, S. angulosa, S. pulchalla, S. ornate, S. krumbachi, while assemblage B2 consists of S. cymbium, S. nitida, S dilitata, S. laevigata, S. rotundata, S. costigera, S. excavata, and S. communis. 642 BULLETIN OF THE IRAQ NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM Application of benthic foraminifera Cluster C: The association of this cluster consists of Asterorotalia dentata, A. milletti, Quinqueloculina parvula, Q. berthelotiana, Q. seminula, Q. peregrina, Q. crassicarinata, Q. padana, Q. poeyana, Q. patagonica, Q. venusta, Q. bosciana, Q. disparilis, Q. tropicalis, Q. buchiana, Q. bicarinata, Q. bubiyanensis. Adelosina echinate, A. elegans, A. duthiersi, A. granulocostat, A. intricate, and Spiroloculina depressa. These taxa prefer shallower aquatic microhabitats (Murray, 1991). Cluster D: The D1 cluster association is dominated by Adelosina sp., Cycloforina contorta, E. excavatum, E. margariteceum, T. asymmetrica, E. Chipolensis. Whereas the D2 cluster consists of A. laevigata, A. mediterranensis, A. pullchella, A. partschi, A. bicornis, A. sidebottom, A. cliarensis, A. crassicarinata, T. barnardi, Cibicides refulgens, C. dispars, Challengerella bradyii, T. littoralis, Cibicides sp., T. affinis, and Ordiosalis umbonatus. Principal Component Analysis and Bivariate Correlation: The first two axes of the principal component analysis (PCA) explain 85.94% of the total variation in the data set (Tab. 6). This percentage is relatively high, and therefore, the foreground will represent the variability of the data. In PCA, the first axis (76.5%) is positively related to Miskan West B (SW-M1), F (S4b-Kh) and negatively related to the low tide pattern from Miskan D (Low Tide-3) (-1) M2 Miskan East C (-7.5), E (-3) (S4a-Kh). The first axis is positively related to the distribution of Quinquloculina disparilis, Spiroloculina krumbachi, S. costigera, S. rotundata, S. cornata, S. pulchalla, S. Costigera, Bathysiphon sp., B. filiforuis, Elphidium chipolensis, E. margariteceum, Textularia, foliacea, T. secasensis, Bifarinella robusta, Botuloides pouciloculus, Triloculina plicata, Q. poeyana, Elphidium margariteceum, E. excavatum, Textularia foliacea, Bifarinella robusta. While it is negatively related to Cibicides dispars, C. refulgens, Adelosina echinate, A. elegans, Astrorotalia milletti, A. dentate, Chanllengerella baradyii, Quinquloculina berthelotiana, Q. seminula, Q. tropicalis, Spiroloculina sp., Eliphidium exacavatum, Elph. chipolensis, Triloculina barnardi, Cyclotorina contorta, Cibicidoides subhaidingerii, Ammonia beccarii, A. umbonate, and Ammonia sp. The second axis explains 9.3 % of the variance, which is positively related to the Al-Khiran coastline samples (S5b-Kh), and S6 and negatively related to S4akh and East Miskan samples (M2). This axis is also positively related to Spiroloculina dilitata, S. laevigata, S. nitida, S. hadai, S. excavata, Coscinospira hemperichii, Neoeponides schreibersii, Cribroelphidium poeyamum and negatively related to Adelosina pullchella, A. crassicarinata, and Elphidium excavate (Diag. 2). Q-mode clustering analysis (Diag. 3) confirmed three predominant groups (A, B, and C). The three distinctive facies express the following: Group A, S5A, S5B, and S6 represent a shallow sea condition ranging from 20 cm to 1 m depth. Group B ranges from 1.5 m to 2 m showed gradient and slightly deeper conditions. Group C defined a deeper well-acquainted sample out of 6 in imitation of 10 m. The anoxic conditions and lower number of benthic foraminifers characterize the lowermost part of the Al-Khiran coastline (Diag. 4). 643 BULLETIN OF THE IRAQ NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM Alsalameen and Dakrory Diagram (4): Order Percentage %. Heavy Metals: Heavy elements are introduced into the environment through various pathways such as fusion, fuel combustion, and industrialization. They find their way into the Arabian Gulf through atmospheric fallout, dumping, accidental leaks, earth system flows, anthropogenic activities, and geological changes (Al-Yousuf et al., 2000). Several studies have been conducted on the concentrations of heavy metals at different locations in the Arabian Gulf and Kuwait territorial water (Al-Arfaj and Alam, 1993; Fowler et al., 1993; Al- Abddali et al., 1996; Saeed et al., 1999; Nigam et al., 2006; Al-Enezi, 2002, 2015, 2020). Table (1) shows the distribution of Hg in the studied areas, while Table (6) shows the concentration values for Ag, Al, As, Ba, Ca, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, and Fe. Tables in the Appendices show the concentration values of K, Mg, Mn, Na, Ni, Pb, Sb, Se, Ti, V, and Zn in the sediments. These tables revealed that Hg showed a similar pattern in the investigated areas. High concentrations of Hg were recorded in SW-M1 and M-2 from the Miskan Island (Table 1). A high concentration pattern was recorded for arsenic (As) in samples S-6, S-5, B, and constant pattern of < 0.01 in the rest of the samples. High Cd, Pb, Se, V, Be, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Zn, Ni, Mg, K, Al, and Ba concentrations were reported in sample M-2 (Diag. 6). High Al, K, Mg, Mn, and Ni contents were recorded in stations M-2 and S-6. Low Cd, Cu, Pb, and V concentrations have been reported in stations SW-M1 and the Al-Khiran coastline (Diag. 6). Analyzed samples show similar Ca contents except sample S-5A which exhibits a relatively low Ca concentration (Diag. 7). 644 BULLETIN OF THE IRAQ NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM Application of benthic foraminifera Table (6): Location, total organic matter, and percentage of size fraction studied sediment samples. Locality Sediment type TOM (%) > 500 500–250 250–125 125– 63 < 63 SWM1 Muddy sand 1.765 8.23 40 39.49 8.91 2.37 East Miskan Muddy sand 1.686 7.65 42.97 40.37 5.99 2.89 LT-M-3 Muddy sand 1.652 8.11 40.21 39.97 8.42 2.30 S4a-Kh sand 0.455 60.38 20.8 10.54 7.10 1.68 S4b-Kh sand 0.220 62.99 18.71 12.44 6.71 0.55 S5a-Kh sand 0.306 61.19 18.44 12.21 7.11 0.70 S5b-Kh sand 0.175 60.10 19.10 11.77 7.81 0.84 Al-Khiran Beach S6 Muddy sand 1.512 8.20 42.61 39.11 7.18 2.91 Diagram (5): As, Be, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Sb, V, and Zn profiles in studied stations. All trace elements are shown as ratios to ppm/wt% . Stations R at io i n p p m /w t% 645 BULLETIN OF THE IRAQ NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM Alsalameen and Dakrory Diagram (6): Al, Ba, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, Se, As, Be, Cd, Co, Cr, Ni, Pb, Sb, V and Zn profiles in studied stations. All trace elements are shown as ratios to ppm/wt%. Diagram (7): Ca concentrations in ppm. C o n ce n tr at io n ( p p m ) 317133.33 312533.33 323666.67 354533.33 354500 179800 325333.33 237750 0 50000 100000 150000 200000 250000 300000 350000 400000 C o n ce n tr at io n s (p p m ) Stations R at io i n p p m /w t % Stations 646 BULLETIN OF THE IRAQ NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM Application of benthic foraminifera Grain-Size Distribution and Total Organic Matter: The grain size analysis showed a predominance of coarse sand, fine sand, silt, and clay. The studied sediments consist of about 70.75% sand in most of the studied area. Silt and clay compositions were recorded at average 25.25% and rare shell fragments at average 4%. The coarse sand part increased towards the sea in the Al Khiran samples; while the fine part (mud and clay) increases around the Miskan Island samples and decreases in the Al Khiran station (Tab. 6). The total organic matter (TOM) is higher in the Miskan samples with an average of 1.70 % compared to the Al Khiran samples (average of 0.54 %). CONCLUSIONS Sediment samples have been collected from the Miskan Island Al-Khiran coastline in Kuwait to examine the environmental factors controlling benthic foraminifera’s distribution and species richness. Based on the quantitative analysis of the benthic foraminiferal assemblages in these sediments, 19 families, 6 orders, 29 genera, and 94 species were recorded. The quantitative distribution of the benthic foraminifera around the coral reefs varied from Miskan Island to Al-Khiran coastline suggesting strong environmental changes and productivity. The highest diversity of the benthic foraminiferal assemblages in the Miskan Island is due to the high nutrient quantity that comes from Shatt Al-Arab through the drainage system and the coral reefs around the island. Another indication of a slight increase in oxygen in the Miskan Island is the increased diversity and presence of benthic taxa such as Eponides sp. and Laevidentalina sp., which appear to be tolerant of bottom aquifer oxygen depletion and high organic matter flows. The relative abundance of the framboidal pyrite in the Miskan Island also confirms this. The high foraminifera richness recorded at Miskan West may be the result of the presence of high-quality organic matter trapped in the sediments and derived from Shatt Al-Arab. Deformities and foraminifera preservation in the Miskan Island are due to the dilution from the influence of the freshwater of Shatt Al-Arab in the north. Q-mode clustering analysis of the studied samples pointed out that the different locations and depth gradients are the main factors that affected the differences in Foraminifera assemblages. The data indicates that heavy metals and PTE concentrations observed in the studied stations were within the range of normal standard values reported for unpolluted marine areas and with the sediment quality guidelines. In general, the studied stations revealed the high diversity, low turbidity, and good oxidation of the surface bottom sediments, and the PTE concentrations in the sediments are within the range of published background values for similarly uncontaminated areas west of the Arabian Gulf. There is no clear abnormality in the identified species, and most species show normal aperture, coiling, shape, and size. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The authors acknowledge and thank the Public Authority for Applied Education and Training (PAAET) for the financial support of this project, Grant No. BE 12-13. 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University of Illinois Press, Urbana, IL, 144 pp. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2005.08.024 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10347-015-0437-5 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cageo.2004.05.005 https://doi.org/10.1016/S0273-1223(99)00587-9 https://doi.org/10.4319/lo.2011.56.5.1587 https://doi.org/10.1016/S0031-0182(02)00603-X 652 BULLETIN OF THE IRAQ NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM Application of benthic foraminifera Sheppard, C., Al-Husiani, M., Al-Jamali, F., Al-Yamani, F., Baldwin, R. and Bishop, J. 2010. The gulf: a young sea in decline. Marine Pollution Bulletin 60 (1): 13-38. [CrossRef] Simpson, E. 1949. Measurement of diversity. Nature, 163:688. [Click here] Sreenivasulu, G., Praseetha, B. S., Daud, N. R., Varghese, T. I., Prakash, T. N., Jayaraju, N. 2019. Benthic foraminifera as potential ecological proxies for environmental monitoring in coastal regions: a study on the Beypore estuary, Southwest coast of India. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 138: 341-351. [Click here] Van der Zwaan, G. J. 1983. Quantitative analyses and the reconstruction of benthic foraminiferal communities. Utrecht Micropaleontological Bulletin, 30: 49-69. [Click here] APPENDICES Appendix (1): Test results of Hg analysis. All the results are given in ppb. Sample ID Hg in ppb SW-M1 0.0200 M-2 0.0217 S-4 A 0.0163 S-4 B 0.0120 S-5 B 0.0142 S-6 0.0119 Low tide-3 0.0135 Appendix (2): Test results of metal analysis. All the results are given in mg/kg (ppm). Sample ID Ag Al As Ba Be Ca Cd SW-M1 <0.01 467.70 <0.01 8.60 0.37 317133.33 0.10 M-2 <0.01 1237.67 <0.01 22.07 0.50 312533.33 0.60 Low tide-3 <0.01 377.70 <0.01 14.20 0.10 323666.67 0.00 S-4 A <0.01 239.40 <0.01 20.80 0.10 354533.33 0.00 S-4 B <0.01 234.20 <0.01 20.60 0.10 354500.00 0.00 S-5 A <0.01 140.10 <0.01 4.23 0.10 179800.00 0.00 S-5 B <0.01 369.20 0.53 8.37 0.13 325333.33 0.10 S-6 <0.01 727.77 1.60 13.77 0.10 237750.00 0.10 Appendix (3): Test results of metal analysis. All the results are given in mg/kg (ppm). Sample ID K Mg Mn Na Ni Pb Sb Se Tl V Zn SW-M1 396.67 4796.67 40.00 3190.00 3.03 <0.01 1.53 16.43 <0.01 2.17 6.97 M-2 716.67 12873.33 110. 4183.33 6.87 0.60 1.00 51.83 <0.01 11.73 17.00 Low tide- 3 506.67 1633.33 10.00 3866.67 2.53 <0.01 0.83 4.87 <0.01 2.30 5.40 S-4 A 530.00 4850.00 20.00 4103.33 1.77 <0.01 1.43 3.50 <0.01 1.50 3.90 S-4 B 606.67 4756.67 20.00 4420.00 1.63 <0.01 0.80 3.53 <0.01 1.30 3.63 S-5 A 536.67 3476.67 20.00 3383.33 1.07 <0.01 0.63 4.00 <0.01 1.13 3.53 S-5 B 696.67 6883.33 36.67 4930.00 2.47 <0.01 1.07 9.10 <0.01 2.77 6.03 S-6 756.67 7810.00 56.67 4020.00 4.33 <0.01 1.23 15.77 <0.01 4.13 6.63 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2009.10.017 https://www.nature.com/articles/163688a0 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2781-0463 https://dspace.library.uu.nl/bitstream/1874/205889/1/Utrecht+Micropaleontological+Bulletins-30-Meulenkamp.pdf https://dspace.library.uu.nl/bitstream/1874/205889/1/Utrecht+Micropaleontological+Bulletins-30-Meulenkamp.pdf 653 BULLETIN OF THE IRAQ NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM Alsalameen and Dakrory Bull. Iraq nat. Hist. Mus. (2023) 17(4): 629-653. تقييم التلوث في جزيرة مسكان وساحل لنيفرا القاعية ملفوراا تطبيقات الكويت ،الخيران **أحمد محمد دكروري و *منى عايش السالمين .الكويت الهيئة العامة للتعليم التطبيقي والتدريب كلية التربية األساسية قسم العلوم،* .يا، جمهورية مصر العربيةجامعة املنيا، كلية العلوم، قسم الجيولوجيا، املن** 20/12/2023، تأريخ النشر: 1/8/2023القبول: ، تأريخ 3/3/2023تأريخ االستالم: الخالصة Crو Feو Mnاستخدم التنوع البيولوجي للفورامنيفرا القاعية وتركيز املعادن الثقيلة مثل زيرة مسكان و ساحل حول الشعاب املرجانية حول ج Coو Cdو Znو Pbو Niو Cuو الخيران في الكويت كمؤشرعلى الجهاد البيئي والذي ينتج من نشاط االنسان في الفترة بين فبراير .انوع 94و اجنس 29رتبة و 6عائلة شملت 19تم التعرف على 2019الى فبراير . 2018 ستخدام ( للفورامنيفرا أربع مجموعات، بينما نتج عن اRنتج عن استخدام التحليل ) ( ثالث مجاميع رئيسية وقد استخد م عمق املاء كعامل للمقارنة. وكانت املجاميع PCAالتحليل ) متر، و مجموعة 1 –سم 20تمثل فورامنيفرا تعيش بعمق يتراوح بين (أ)كالتالي، مجموعة اني متر. يع 8 6-متر . أما مجموعة )ج( تعيش باملياه العميقة من 2 –1.5)ب( تعيش بعمق بين وكسجين بدليل وجود البيريت في الرواسب. وأيضا يعاني األ ساحل الخيران من نقص في تركيز ع سبب قلة عدد أما في جزيرة مسكان فيرج من التخثث بسبب املخلفات البشرية. ط املياه العذبة من ال الفورامينيفرا الى تكلس وتحلل هياكلها. حيث تتميز جزيرة مسكان باخت ه املالحة من الخليج مما يؤثر على ملوحة املياه وأيضا جرف الرواسب وتعكر العراق مع امليا املياه بسبب النشاط البشري. وتعتبر املنطقتين خاليتين من التلوث باملعادن الثقيلة عند مقارنتها مع تركيز هذه املعادن في أقرب شاطئ لها في ايرن. ولكن اأملر ال يخلو من وجود مواد ضافة الى أثر األ في بعض املواقع و يعزي هذا الى أن املنطقة جغرافيا شبة مغلقة بعالية السمية لم تسجل أي تشوهات في الفورامنيفرا التي تم التعرف عليها، أغلبها كان له النشاط البشري. فتحة الفم، و الشكل و الحجم و اتجاه لفة هيكل طبيعي.