Pune-based scientists have found two new species of microscopic marine organisms, Psammophaga holzmannae and Psammophaga sinhai, in intertidal sediments along Maharashtra's Konkan coast. They are single-celled protists of the genus Psammophaga, a group of benthic foraminifera, that swallow microparticles and stick sand grains together to form protective shells called tests. Foraminifera live from shallow intertidal zones to deep ocean trenches and signal changes in salinity, temperature, heavy metals and ocean acidification; their fossil shells help reconstruct past ocean temperatures and sea levels.