Submit Manuscript | http://medcraveonline.com Introduction Cetaceans are considered excellent indicators of health in marine ecosystems 1 and are susceptible to various threats of anthropic origin such as habitat degradation, pollution of aquatic environments, increased vessel trafc and interactions with fshing nets. 2 A reproductive population of right whales (Eubalaena australis) frequents the southern coast of Brazil every year during the winter and spring months and shows preference for some inlets on the coast of Santa Catarina to perform mating and parental care activities. 3–6 These mammals move slowly between inlets where they are often visible on the surface, and remain in the region for a few weeks and/or months. 7,8 Due to the behavior of close to coastal proximity, especially the female and calf pairs, these animals are extremely vulnerable to coastal human activities. The loss of habitats of reproductive importance represents one of the greatest threats to cetacean species. 9,10 Areas frequented by right whales, such as these reproductive concentration areas of southern Brazil, require special protection due to the vital importance of carrying out their reproductive cycle, while also aiming at population recovery and reoccupation of their distribution areas. 2,11 Because they live and thrive within a conservation area for sustainable use, that is, a space shared between society and cetaceans; there are interactions through water sports, port activities, fshing and tourism. It is essential to study and monitor the environmental quality of the species, as they are an active element for the sustainable development of the region. Studies on the infuence of environmental factors on the distribution of right whales in reproductive areas have described some common chemical and physical factors of the environment in relation to habitat use. For southern right whales, factors such as depth and slope, 12 calm waters and absence of rocks, 13,14 protection from wind and waves, sandy bottom and shallow depth, 15 prove importance in studies of habitat use. Recent studies of humpback whales preference in the reproductive area of Hawaii, for example, have also found a relationship between depth and type of seabed. 16,17 Some whales, such as the Gray whales, do not feed on the ocean foor. 18 They roll to one side and swim along the bottom, then aspire (by pressing the tongue) the sediment and prey where sediment and water are fltered out by the whale, indicating this benthic feeding behavior. 19 This disturbance of the sediment by feeding whales changes the composition of sediments and supports the idea that this behavior shapes the structure of the substrate and sand and helps maintain balanced levels of the amphipods, their main source of prey in some areas of study. 20 Gray whales scour the seabed when they feed and this process leads to the resuspension of sediments and nutrients that would otherwise remain on the seabed. Therefore, although this feeding may seem like a violent disturbance, it may in fact play a big role in benthic productivity. 20,21 Due to the inherent interrelationships between geological, physical, chemical and biological in marine environments, the use of benthic organisms as indicators is regarded as a good alternative for environmental studies. These indicator organisms, the benthic foraminifera, are single-celled, capable of synthesizing the general characteristics of the environment, highlighting the environmental J Aquac Mar Biol. 2022;11(3):113‒123. 113 ©2022 Eichler et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and build upon your work non-commercially. Analysis of benthic foraminifera in the reproductive area of right whales (Eubalaena australis) in the Western South Atlantic Volume 11 Issue 3 - 2022 Patricia Pinheiro Beck Eichler, 1,2 Audrey Amorim Corrêa, 3 Christofer Paul Barker, 2 João Henrique Quoos, 4 Evelyn da Rocha Mendes Pereira, 5 Stephanie Leone de AP Saldanha, 6 Igor Gustavo da Fonseca Carrasqueira, 6 Luigi Jovane 6 1 Laboratory of Marine Geology and Geophysics and Environmental Monitoring (GGEMMA), Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), Brazil 2 EcoLogicProject.com, USA 3 Graduate Program in Environmental Science and Technology (UNIVALI), Brazil 4 Environment and Geomatics Lab (IFSC), Brazil 5 Dynamic Bilingual School, R Alves de Brito, Brazil 6 Oceanographic Center for Stratigraphic Records of the São Paulo Oceanographic Institute (IOUSP) São Paulo-SP, Brazil Correspondence: Patricia Pinheiro Beck Eichler, Laboratory of Marine Geology and Geophysics and Environmental Monitoring (GGEMMA), Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), University Campus, PO Box 1596; CEP 59072-970, Natal - RN, Brazil, Email Received: November 04, 2022 | Published: November 16, 2022 Abstract Susceptibility and vulnerability to impacts make Cetaceans and Benthic Foraminifera sentinels of health in marine environments. A breeding population of Right whales (Eubalaena australis) annually migrates to the “Environmental Protection Area” in Santa Catarina, Brazil, where Ribanceira/Ibiraquera Bay, and its harbor, are located. Since Right whales rest in shallow areas, their stomachs touch the marine sediment bottom, where foraminiferal assemblages inhabits. Temperature, salinity, pH, turbidity, grain size, morphometry, and magnetic susceptibility correlated to foraminiferal species, contribute to the understanding of habitat preference for right whales. Here we show saline waters in the northern areas associated with Pseudononion atlanticum, Elphidium sp., Buccella peruviana, Quinqueloculina patagonica, and 21°C of temperature is the preferred by mother and calf pairs. The harbor has lower pH, higher temperatures, magnetic susceptibility, and turbidity, and high depth is due to dredging. These characteristics do not support the presence of the Right whales, the top of the food pyramid, so decline or increase in their population indicates changes in their habitat. We stress the importance of unravelling signals of Benthic and Nekton coupling by understanding whales’ habitat; to ensure the recovery of their populations, and the survival of other species in the marine ecosystem. Journal of Aquaculture & Marine Biology Case Report Open Access