Publisher's Synopsis
and Acknowledgements This book attempts to describe the earliest known Academy of Sciences). Without their assistance in planktonic foraminifera, of the Jurassic, and to particular, our understanding of the early planktonic portray their evolution into the widespread and foraminifera would have been much the poorer. holoplanktonic taxa of the Early Cretaceous. Much of the SEM photography has been specially prepared for the book by two of the In doing this we estimate we have dealt with over 135 species, belonging to 26 genera. It has authors (M. K. B-F. and J. E. W. ) on the University been our policy to illustrate, with SEM imagery College, London (Zeiss DSM 940) and The Natural History Museum's (Hitachi S 2500) whenever possible, holotypes or other primary types, topotypes and other reliable specimens. To instruments, respectively. Many more illustrations this end, we have been generously helped by many have been digitized from the original negatives micropalaeontologists and other technical workers, held in both those institutions from earlier publi without whose assistance the book could not have cations of the authors and our collaborators been prepared. The systematic taxonomy is our (notably Drs Damini Desai, Phil Copestake, responsibility, however, and we must be blamed Marigold White, Mike Simmons and Tatiana for any errors which may have occurred. Gorbachik), over the last decade.
