CALCAREOUS NANNOPLANKTON consists of small Protist algae, belonging to the Phylum Haptophyta, present in great abundances in the modern oceans surface and, being among the principal responsible of the primary productivity, it is at the base of the food chain. It plays a key role in the Carbon cycle.
They are single-celled organisms, photosynthetic, therefore autotrophic; the cells cell secretes calcareous scales, informally called coccoliths, which dimensions vary from 2 to 20 microns.
The algae that constitute the calcareous nannoplankton are the probable descendants of algae appeared in the early Triassic, known as calcareous nannofossils that constitute part of marine sediments and sedimentary rocks.
The study of the calcareous nannofossils is of great interest in the biostratigraphic applications (dating and correlations) as well for paleoecology ad paleoceanography.
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