Grant: Research Tools and Instruments - Category 1 (<$150,000)

The research tool consists of a light microscope with (i) high resolution optical components for the analysis of small micrometric-size objects at high magnification (up to 1000X), (ii) an interferential contrast system to help with the observation of the outer structure and textural pattern of microfossils characterized by a semi-transparent membrane, and (iii) a digital camera for producing images with a resolution in the order of nanometers.The microscope will allow the study of small organic-walled microfossils, including those of unicellular algae (cysts of dinoflagellates, prasinophytes, chlorophytes) and protozoa (organic linings of rhizopods and foraminifers), in addition to pollen grains and spores of terrestrial vegetation. It will permit detailed observations, descriptions, and photographs of selected specimens. It will also permit proper description of new dinoflagellate cyst species and of taxa with unknown affinities. The device will contribute to a better knowledge of the taxonomy of organic-walled microfossils in marine sediments and peatlands.The applications concern, in particular, the development of common microfossil databases for statistical treatments, and the establishment of dinocyst biostratigraphies for the Pliocene and Pleistocene. These studies will allow the reconstruction of the physico-chemical parameters of the waters in which original organisms developed, and will provide basic information on changes in the marine environment, in response to natural causes or to human-related perturbations. The applications also include the reconstruction of recent changes within peatlands of Quebec with the objective of modelling the carbon budget at a regional scale.