Chlorophyll and carotenoid pigments in Foraminifera and their symbiotic algae: analysis by high performance liquid chromatography

High performance liquid chromatography has been used to examine the chlorophyll and carotenoid pigments of 11 species, representing 10 genera and 5 orders, of Foraminifera.The presence of symbiotic algae or their chloroplasts in a species is ind~cated by a high concentration of chlorophyll a in relation to its degradation products.The classes of algae present are indicated by the class-specific carotenoids.Both chlorophylls and carotenoids are used in an analysis of the diet of Foraminifera.The method has been successfully applied to a single organism of the species Elphidiurn williarnsoni.No significant amounts of pigments were found in Allogromia laticollaris, Jadamrnina rnacrescens, Trocharnrnina inflata, Quinqueloculina dirnidiata and Ammonia tepida.Elphidium oceanense contains no symbiotic algae but concentrates carotenoids from e ~t h e r algal or animal sources.The pigments found in Amphistegina lessonii and Globigerinoides ruber are consistent with the known symbionts, a diatom and a dinoflagellate respectively, of these 2 species.The pigments of E. williamsoni, Haynesina gerrnanica and Reophax rnoniliforrnis indicate the presence of symbiotic diatoms or their chloroplasts.R. rnoniliformis, which also concentrates beta-carotene, is the first member of the agglutinating order Lituolida in which symbiosis has been demonstrated.The amount of chlorophyll a per individual varied between 27 ng and 0.6 ng, and is related to the size and immediate past history of the specimens examined as well as to the number of chambers containing symbionts.