Chapter Five Patterns of Carbonate Production and Deposition on Reefs

Abstract

Quantifying carbonate production of modern reefs at local, provincial, or global scales, and assessing changes in the cumulative production of Quaternary reefs, in response to changes in the environment over time, are difficult challenges. Calculations suffer from large uncertainties irrespective of the methods used. There are evident contrasts in the compositions and distributions of sediment types and of reef fabrics from zone to zone across reef systems, in response to differences in the processes of carbonate production and distribution. The major carbonate producers are limited to five biotic groups including corals, red coralline algae, molluscs, the green alga Halimeda , and benthic foraminifera. This chapter aims to address the following: (1) What are the growth and carbonate production rates of reef builders and associated organisms, and what are the respective contributions of these organisms and relevant communities to total sediment production; (2) To what extent are the different reef sediment types reflections of the adjacent benthic communities and diagnostic in terms of depositional environments; (3) What are the differences in rates of deposition between differing sedimentary piles and their major controls?