AI Article Synopsis
- Sediments are common on coral reefs, but previous studies often overlooked hydrodynamic influences and focused on isolated aspects.
- The research quantified sediment dynamics, measuring suspended sediments, sediment deposition, and the effects of water movement and marine life across different depths.
- Significant findings included currents transporting 12.6 tons of sediment over the study area in just six days, with 5.2% potentially deposited, and a clear differentiation in sediment behavior between the dynamic shallow reef flat and the stagnant reef slope.
Article Abstract
Sediments are ubiquitous on coral reefs. However, studies of reef sediments have largely focused on isolated reservoirs, or processes, and rarely consider hydrodynamic drivers. We therefore provide a quantitative snapshot of sediment dynamics on a coral reef. Across a depth profile, we simultaneously examined: suspended sediments, sediment deposition and accumulation, and hydrodynamic and biological movement processes. We reveal the marked potential for the water column to deliver sediments. Currents carried 12.6 t of sediment over the 2,314 m study area in 6 days. Sediment traps suggested that a surprisingly high percentage of this sediment was potentially deposited (5.2%). Furthermore, wave-driven resuspension and reworking by parrotfishes separated a highly dynamic sediment regime on the shallow reef flat (3 m), from a more stagnant reef slope (4.5 m-12 m). This study provides a comprehensive model of how hydrodynamic forces and on-reef processes may shape sediment dynamics on a coral reef.
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| http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.marenvres.2022.105763 | DOI Listing |
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