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[[Image:LH048AB_aperture1a.jpg|thumb|right|300px| <font size="2">'''Fig. 1.''' The aperture and the apertural face (coloured pink) in a biserial form - ''Textularia'' aff. ''goesi'' Cushman. SEM graphs of specimens from the Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea. Recent. '''A-B''': Apertural (A) and peripheral (B) views of an intact specimen. Note the smooth surfaces characteristic of the faces of many agglutinated forms. '''a''': aperture; '''af''': apertural face; '''sut''': (chamber) suture (from [http://paleopolis.rediris.es/cg/CG2006_M02/index.html Hottinger 2006] with permission from the author)]] 



'''APERTURE''' - the primary opening of the foraminiferal [[test|shell]] cavity towards the ambient environment. May be covered by subsequent chambers and thus transformed into a foramen. May be masked (see mask). May be single or multiple.

Remarks: We insist here on restricting the use of the term "aperture" in chambered shells to the ultimate opening of the last chamber cavity into the ambient environment. When a new chamber is added to the previous one as a main process of growth, the aperture is transformed into a means of communication between successive chamber lumina and thus its function changes. The transformed aperture is called a (intercameral) foramen. Its morphology may change through selective resorption of its margins. Often, the last chamber of the shell is not preserved because of its thin walls (see [[lamellation]]) and the aperture is lost.


From: Hottinger (2006), [http://paleopolis.rediris.es/cg/CG2006_M02/index.html Illustrated glossary of terms used in foraminiferal research]. [http://paleopolis.rediris.es/cg/uk-index.html Carnets de Géologie], [http://paleopolis.rediris.es/cg/CG2006_M02/index.html Memoir 2], ISSN 1634-0744.

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See: [[accessory aperture]]