RECENT DINOFLAGELLATE CYSTS FROM ESTUARIES ON THE CENTRAL COAST OF NEW-SOUTH-WALES, AUSTRALIA

Nineteen species of dinoflagellate cysts and four species of acritarchs have been recognized in surface sediments from estuaries on the N.S.W. central coast. Prominent species include Operculodinium centrocarpum (Deflandre & Cookson) Wall 1967, Lingulodinium hemicystum n. sp., Spiniferites bulloideus (Deflandre and Cookson) Sarjeant 1970, Spiniferites mirabilis (Rossignol) Sarjeant 1970, Spiniferites ramosus (Ehrenberg) Loeblich & Loeblich 1966 and Protoperidinium spp. Cyst assemblages within an estuary are more similar to each other than to assemblages from comparable environments but from different estuaries. Environmental changes within an estuary cause the cyst abundance to decrease without significantly altering the relative abundances. Lingulodinium hemicystum and Cobricosphaeridium giganteum are described as new species.