O ESTUDO DOS OSTRACODES BATÍBICOS NO BRASIL

Abstract

Bathybic ostracods are important source of data for paleoceanography and paleoclimatology. Research developed in the latest decades has demonstrated that ostracods in deep-sea environments have not only high diversity but also ecological peculiarities when compared to shallow water assemblages. In Brazil the knowledge on bathybic assemblages resulted from 24 studies published either by Brazilian or foreign researchers, which allowed the description of 47 species and the register of other 80 described elsewhere. Most part of these studies, however, was carried out in the southern of the Brazilian continental margin and the Rio Grande Rise. The contribution of this research to the knowledge of the Brazilian continental margin, its evolution and biodiversity is briefly discussed.