Preliminary investigations of the stratigraphic utility of calcareous nannoplankton in the Gulf of Mexico-Caribbean region were begun prior to 1954. Most of the applications of these minute forms, however, have been published during the last decade. Their stratigraphic occurrences have been documented for the Late Cretaceous and younger sections of the region, but, insofar as is indicated through publication, they have not gained the status of routine application in onshore and nearshore subsurface studies.

However, the stratigraphic value of calcareous nannofossils has been demonstrated amply. They are second to no group for the rapid evaluations needed routinely in the shipboard work connected with geologic oceanographic studies. Their worldwide applications, particularly in the Joint Oceanographic Institutes Deep Sea Drilling Program, include the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico. Late Cretaceous through Holocene species occurrences have been calibrated for the Gulf region with the planktonic foraminiferal-based zonation scheme on Leg X of the Deep Sea Drilling Project. Current work in or applicable to the Gulf of Mexico-Caribbean region is summarized in this symposium volume.

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