External Sediment Supply Research Articles

Can we accurately estimate sediment budgets on Mars?

Sediment budgets are fundamentally important for planetary science. However, only one primary method, based on remote sensing, is currently available for determining extraterrestrial sediment budgets. For determining sediment budgets on Earth, both in-situ and remote sensing methods are available. Despite the widespread use of the two methods, there has been surprisingly little research on how well the sediment budgets produced by these two approaches reconcile with one another, which highlights the lack of quantitative understanding of errors for sediment budgets measured with remote sensing in planetary research. Therefore, there is a general need to expand our knowledge of sediment budgets. Here we use a background review and analog case study of an aeolian dunefield in Grand Canyon, Earth to frame a path forward for addressing shortcomings of remote sensing sediment budgets on Mars. We estimate a 53% percent difference in the sediment budget determined with remote sensing relative to in-situ methods for a simple endmember scenario of a dunefield within a unimodal wind directional regime and no external sediment supply. However, when we incorporated key sources of uncertainty in remote sensing change detection following methods commonly used by geomorphologists on Earth, the estimates of sediment budget differences relative to the in-situ method spanned a much larger range, from 3% to 138%. Our case study also suggests that sediment budget errors could be much larger under more complex wind direction, sediment supply, and physiographic settings, and that variability in those landscape characteristics might be used to better estimate errors for dunefield sediment budgets. We conclude that by comparing sediment budgets derived from in-situ measurements of sediment fluxes and from remote sensing measurements at many more analog sites on Earth, the aeolian research community, and the geomorphology discipline, could gain an understanding of the errors of the remote sensing method, which is used by investigators on other planetary bodies such as Mars. This could improve the ability to quantify sediment budgets on Mars – and, in the future, other planetary environments where high-resolution topographic data are available – as well as directly improve our ability to interpret extraterrestrial landscape evolution related to climate, weather, and geologic history.

Impact of Anthropogenic Activities and Sea Level Rise on a Lagoon System: Model and Field Observations

The long-term geomorphological evolution of a coastal lagoon is driven by hydrodynamic forcing and is influenced by climate changes and human activities. In this study, a numerical model of the Qilihai lagoon (QL) system was established based on field measurements, previous hydrology data and satellite remote sensing measurements, to simulate the geomorphological evolution of QL from 1900 to 2018. The influences of sea level rise, runoff and human activities on the evolution of geomorphology were investigated. The results of the model show that the construction projects including the tide gate, the bridge, reclamation and the straightening or widening of the tidal channel increased the net deposition within the QL system. Furthermore, the spatial distribution of tidal asymmetry during the natural time period was similar to that of the change in bed thickness. However, bed erosion or deposition was not only dependent on tidal asymmetry but it was also affected by the external sediment supply and the discharge of upstream rivers. Moreover, sea level rise had a significant effect on the tidal asymmetry; therefore, it enhanced the accumulation of sediments in the QL system, while runoff had little effect on the tidal asymmetry or geomorphological changes in the system.

Persistence of depositional features in a strongly seasonal, tide-dominated delta

The Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna (GBM) Delta is one of the largest deltas in the world, covering more than 100,000 km2. The GBM River system transports over one billion tons of sediment annually and delivers ∼750 million tons to the Bay of Bengal, ∼25% of which is advected by tides into the fluvially abandoned western delta plain. Fluvial sediment and water discharge are controlled by the southwest Asian monsoon, with wet season discharge rates exceeding those of the dry season by a factor of five. The Sundarbans National Forest (SNF) is located within the GBM Delta and, covering more than 10,000 km2, is the world's largest continuous mangrove stand. The present rate of sediment delivery allows the SNF platform elevation to keep pace with regional sea level rise, but India's National River Linking Project (NRLP) could decrease the suspended sediment loads of Ganges and Brahmaputra Rivers by 39–75% and 9–25% respectively, and thus may change future sedimentation. In this study, we examine whether sediment stored in the tidal channels could serve as an additional source for platform nourishment, if resuspended and delivered to the mangrove platform throughout the year. Over two field seasons, 70 shallow (<50 cm) sediment cores were collected from the channel banks, imaged using x-radiography to observe fine scale changes in depositional characteristics on tidal channel banks, and subsampled for textural and geochemical analyses. In more than half of the cores examined there is no change in the style of the laminations, suggesting that the processes controlling deposition remain constant throughout the year, despite the seasonal change in the external sediment supply. Cores where the depth of laminations decreases from wet to dry season demonstrate that sediment is being eroded from the banks and advected elsewhere, with the mangrove platform a likely sink. Over 70% of cores showed surface (0–2 cm) grain sizes coarsening from the wet to the dry season, which could be the product of the winnowing of fine sediments as overall sediment supply decreases and material with lower bulk density is preferentially taken away. The findings from textural analysis were further supported by total organic carbon (TOC) profiles, which also indicate constant reworking of sediment on the channel banks throughout the year.

Evaluation of grainflow mechanisms for martian recurring slope lineae (RSL)

Recurring slope lineae (RSL) are dark narrow features that incrementally lengthen and fade at least once each Mars year. Their origin has remained enigmatic. We report quantitative modeling of three hypotheses related to triggering of over-steepened sand caches that result in dry-grain flow. First, sand could be supplied by either wind blowing upslope from within the crater or by wind blowing into the crater from the outside. Without cementation, grain flows should be directly correlated with temporal variations in potential sediment transport. Second, deliquesced perchlorate salts could increase soil cohesion; with the loss of water this soil cohesion may be reduced. The timing of accumulation versus release can be distinct from each other. Third, seasonal water frost could act in a similar cementation capacity. We assess these hypotheses using atmospheric modeling to determine wind speed, wind direction, temperature, and relative humidity at three craters (Rauna, Krupac, and Palikir) that host confirmed RSL and that cover a large latitudinal range. Overall, we find no convincing support for any of these hypotheses. Deliquescence is predicted to occur only at Rauna crater and its formation does not correlate with RSL activity. The occurrence of frost is inconsistently correlated with RSL activity among the three craters. Upslope winds at Palikir crater transport a significant amount of sediment only when RSL are active. However, the largest sediment flux into the crater is also during periods of RSL activity, thus supporting both internal and external contributions. Sediment transport into Krupac crater to S- and SW-facing slopes is also maximized when RSL are active, but there is no correlated upslope transport. This supports the hypothesis that RSL formation is dominated by external sediment supply alone. On the other hand, W- and NW-facing Krupac and all RSL at Rauna show no correlations with any directional sediment transport. Nonetheless, we suggest that the mixed success of the external sediment transport model is still quantitatively better than any competitor (including water), and that we simply lack the model and data resolution to treat RSL at the required meter scales. In all of the aeolian models, favorably-directed potential sediment flux greatly exceeds the volume of sand that must be displaced to form RSL. We conclude that RSL may require a particular combination of favorable strong winds, local sediment traps, and a supply of sand grains that easily saltate on Mars (~100 μm in diameter).

Sediment Budget Estimates for a Highly Impacted Embayment with Extensive Wetland Loss

External sediment supply is an important control on wetland morphology and vulnerability to storms, sea-level rise, and land use change. Constraining sediment supply and net budgets is difficult due to multiple timescales of variability in hydrodynamic forcing and suspended sediment concentrations, as well as the fundamental limitations of measurement and modeling technologies. We used two independent observational campaigns and one hydrodynamic modeling effort to estimate the sediment supply to Jamaica Bay, New York, USA, an urbanized embayment with a history of extensive wetland loss. We found that all three estimates indicate a net import to the system, ranging from 36 to 74 kt/year, with a mean estimate of 55 kt/year ± 31 kt/year, which is consistent with a prior estimate derived from radionuclide tracers. Net sediment import is controlled by flood-ebb asymmetry in bed shear stress, which results in higher suspended sediment concentrations on flood tide relative to ebb. This indicates a seaward source of sediment that is resuspended by waves in the coastal ocean, likely offshore marine deposits or potentially from the adjacent Hudson River estuary. Despite the net sediment import, a simple sediment budget suggests that the rate of supply is not sufficient to maintain the present geomorphic planform of the system relative to sea-level rise. The convergent estimates from independent methods provide reasonable guidance as context for sediment-based restoration efforts.

Evaluation of Marsh Terraces for Wetland Restoration: A Remote Sensing Approach

Marsh terracing is a wetland restoration technique that is being implemented in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Marsh terraces are segmented berms of soil built within shallow coastal ponds, designed to increase marsh area and reduce wave energy. Approximately 980 linear km of marsh terraces have been constructed over almost 30 years in Louisiana and Texas to combat subsidence and sea-level rise; however little research has been conducted to determine their effectiveness. The objective of this study was to assess marsh terrace performance. The change in marsh terrace areas was measured over time through remote sensing. This analysis was conducted using one-meter resolution imagery from the National Agriculture Imagery program (NAIP) from 2003 until 2017 from five Louisiana coastal parishes. Twenty terrace fields of study between 10 and 14 years old were randomly selected within each parish. Results show more predominant deposition (55%) than erosion (45%) in marsh terraces. Terrace fields with high channel density and thereby an external sediment supply show more deposition compared to low channel density fields. This is the first study assessing multiple marsh terrace fields performance. Results are promising, especially considering the current rate of sea level rise and subsidence in Louisiana.

Marshes Are the New Beaches: Integrating Sediment Transport into Restoration Planning

Recent coastal storms and associated recovery efforts have led to increased investment in nature-based coastal protection, including restoration of salt marshes and construction of living shorelines. In particular, many of these efforts focus on increasing vertical elevation through sediment nourishment, where sediment is removed from the tidal channel and placed on the marsh plain, or preventing lateral erosion through shoreline protection. In the USA alone, millions of dollars have been allocated or spent on these coastal protection solutions over the last few decades because of their perceived sustainability and ecologically positive co-benefits including habitat provision and carbon sequestration. These projects would benefit from integration of sediment transport pathways, budgets, and metrics during planning and modeling of restoration outcomes, in order to evaluate sustainability before investment. This is analogous to the decades of experience with coastal management and engineering on the open coast. Salt marshes are geomorphic features that rely partially on external sediment supply to maintain their network of tidal channels, intertidal flats, and marsh plain. Removing sediment from one component of the overall system to nourish another component may be counterproductive, given that the net sediment budget is unchanged. For example, dredging a tidal channel beyond its equilibrium condition will cause it to fill with sediment from the tidal flat or elsewhere in the system. This may cause slumping of the marsh edge, or over-deepening of other sections of the channel to compensate. Similarly, shoreline protection that prevents edge erosion hampers the marsh plain’s ability to accrete on the levee and naturally transgress landward or it starves other components of the system of regularly supplied sediment. A limited vertical or lateral-only perspective, instead of a three-dimensional perspective, during project planning and evaluation may lead to suboptimal decision-making regarding restoration priorities, approaches, and outcomes. I contend that before significant investments are made in marsh restoration through sediment nourishment or shoreline protection, sediment transport measurements and models that consider sediment dynamics should be integrated into the early phases of restoration planning. This will help identify where and under what conditions marsh restoration will most likely be successful and economically justified. Triaging and prioritizing is then possible, which is a sustainable approach for restoration, given the persistent vulnerability of marshes to sea-level rise, storms, and sediment deficits.

Exploring the Impacts of Seagrass on Coupled Marsh-Tidal Flat Morphodynamics

1 Intertidal coastal environments are prone to changes induced by sea level rise, increases in storminess, temperature, and anthropogenic disturbances. It is unclear how changes in external drivers may affect the dynamics of low energy coastal environments because their response is non-linear, and characterized by many thresholds and discontinuities. As such, process-based modeling of the ecogeomorphic processes underlying the dynamics of these ecosystems is useful, not only to predict their change through time, but also to generate new hypotheses and research questions. Here, we used a three-point dynamic model to investigate how seagrass might affect the behavior of coupled marsh-tidal flat systems. The model directly incorporates ecogeomorphological feedbacks among wind waves, salt marsh vegetation, allochthonous sediment loading, seagrasses and sea level rise. The model was applied to examine potential behaviors of salt marsh systems in the Virginia coastal bays. Differences due to the presence or absence of seagrass and stochastic versus constant drivers lead to the emergence of complex behaviors in the coupled salt marsh-tidal flat system. In intertidal areas without seagrass, small tidal flats are unlikely to expand and provide enough sediment to the salt marshes to combat sea level rise. However, as the tidal flat expands, the concurrent increase in sediment supply due to wave-induced processes allows for the salt marsh to maintain pace with sea level at the expense of salt marsh extent. The presence of seagrass has two effects: 1) it decreases near bed shear stresses thus reducing the sediment flux to the salt marsh platform; 2) it reduces the wave energy acting on the salt marsh scarp, thus reducing boundary erosion. Model results indicate that the reductions in wave power and near bed shear stresses when seagrass is present provide an overall stabilizing effect on the coupled marsh-tidal flat system; but as water depth increases due to sea level rise or as external sediment supply increases, light conditions decline and the system reverts to that of a bare tidal flat.

Geological constraints on mesoscale coastal barrier behaviour

Abstract Barrier/lagoon systems occupy a significant part of the world's coast. They are diverse in size, morphology, geological and oceanographic setting, and morphodynamic behaviour. Understanding the behaviour of barriers at 101 to 102 year and 101 to 102 km scales (mesoscale) is an important scientific and societal goal, not least because of the preponderance of intensive coastal development in a time of global climate change. Such understanding presents significant challenges. Challenges in describing mesoscale system behaviour relate largely to the incomplete evidence base of (i) morphological change in system components, (ii) dynamic and internal forcing factors (drivers) and (iii) geological constraints. These shortcomings curtail the development of baseline datasets against which to test models. Understanding observed changes and thereby predicting future behavioural patterns demands assumptions and simplifications regarding the linkages between initial state, dynamic drivers, system feedbacks and a multiplicity of geological constraints that are often location-specific. The record of mesoscale change is improving with the acquisition of long-term morphological datasets. Advances in technology and chronological control mean that geological investigations can now provide decadal to century-scale temporal resolution of morphological change. In addition, exploratory modelling is improving understanding of the influence of various dynamic and geological factors. Straightforward linking of dynamic forcing and response is seldom able to account for observed mesoscale behaviour. Geological factors exert a significant or even dominant control on barrier behaviour at decadal to century timescales. Whereas these geological controls can be quantified to some extent by detailed investigations of contemporary barrier/lagoon morphology and constituent materials, underlying geology and topography and sediment supply, in all but a few locations, such data are absent. This sets an unavoidable constraint on efforts to quantitatively predict the future behaviour of barrier systems, which are strongly site-specific in terms of their geological setting and morphology. Geological controls exist in a network of interactions that individually and collectively influence mesoscale barrier behaviour. Dominant, first-order controls are: • Basement slope; • Basement irregularity and erodibility; • External sediment supply; • Orientation; and • Shoreline lithification (beachrock and aeolianite) An important intermediate level of geological control is exerted by shoreface morphology. Shorefaces are themselves influenced by underlying geological factors, but they are dynamic at longer timescales than barriers. Geological influences are in most cases unquantified and are usually disregarded when conceptualizing and modelling barrier evolution. Consideration of the geological influences is, however, essential in efforts to predict future behaviour at mesoscale (management) timescales.

Modeling sorting dynamics of cohesive and non-cohesive sediments on intertidal flats under the effect of tides and wind waves

We extend a numerical model to explore the morphodynamics of intertidal flats, with a specific focus on the sorting dynamics of sand and mud. We investigate the effect of tidal currents, wind waves, sediment properties, external sediment supply, flocculation and initial bed composition on the cross-shore profile shape and sediment sorting of intertidal flats. Consistent with existing analytical theories and benchmark simplified numerical solutions, the equilibrium cross-shore profile of intertidal flats simulated by the extended model is convex-up when tidal currents dominate and it progressively becomes concave-up when the strength of wind waves increases. The equilibrium profile is influenced by the external sediment supply which can lead to the seaward advance of intertidal flats. In line with field observations, mud tends to deposit on the upper intertidal flats when wind waves are relatively weak, while sand is mainly distributed on the middle and lower tidal flats. When wind waves are strong, both sand and mud are more easily resuspended and eroded, resulting in a noticeably concave-up profile near the high water mark. The initial bed composition (e.g., percentage of mud and sand fractions) is also found to play an important role: the intertidal flat is more convex-up in a muddier environment. Numerical modeling demonstrates that sediment properties (e.g., critical shear stress for erosion, settling velocity) and flocculation can pronouncedly influence the sediment sorting dynamics by modifying the initiation threshold and the advection distance of entrained sediments. Application of the extended model to a natural study site indicates a qualitative agreement with field observations.

On funneling of tidal channels

AbstractTidal channels dissect the tidal landscape and exert a crucial control on the morphodynamic evolution of these landscapes. Improving our understanding of channel equilibrium morphology is therefore an important issue for both theoretical and practical reasons. We analyze the case of a tidal channel dissecting a relatively short, unvegetated tidal flat characterized by microtidal conditions and a negligible external sediment supply. The three‐dimensional equilibrium configuration of the channel is determined on the basis of a hydrodynamic model, describing the cross‐sectional distribution of the longitudinal bed shear stresses, coupled with a morphodynamic model retaining the description of the main physical processes shaping the channel and the adjacent intertidal platform. Both channel bed and width are allowed to adapt to the flow field so that an equilibrium altimetric and planimetric configuration is eventually obtained, when erosion becomes negligibly small, and asymptotically constant elevations are reached everywhere within the domain. Model results reproduce several observed channel characteristics of geomorphic relevance, such as the relationship between channel cross‐sectional area and the flowing tidal prism, the scaling of the width‐to‐depth ratio with channel width, and the longitudinal distributions of bed elevations and channel widths. In analogy with empirical evidence from estuaries, tidal channel funneling is usually assumed to be described by an exponential trend. Our theoretical analyses, modeling results, and observational evidence suggest that a linear relationship also provides a good approximation to describe longitudinal variations in channel width for short tidal channels. Longitudinal bed profiles characterized by a strong planform funneling tend to attain an upward concavity, whereas a low degree of convergence implies an almost linear profile. Finally, the model allows one to analyze the influence of environmental conditions (sediment characteristics, basin size, tidal amplitude, etc.) on the geomorphological features of tidal channels (equilibrium cross‐sectional area and bottom profile, width‐to‐depth ratios, and planform shape). Wider and deeper channels develop as the width of the domain increases, as the tidal amplitude increases, or as the mean platform elevation decreases. Conversely, narrower and shallower channels result from an increase in the critical shear stress for erosion or a decrease in the flow conductance. We thus believe that this model provides a useful tool for quantitative analyses of long‐term morphodynamics of tidal landscapes.

Contrasting geomorphic response to structural control: The Loughros estuaries, northwest Ireland

Sediment-rich estuaries typically exhibit considerable dynamicity, with channel shifts and shoreline erosion/deposition occurring over timescales of years to decades. Contemporary behaviour is usually attributed to the immediate effect of short-term events (such as storms), longer-term forcing (such as sea-level change) or anthropogenic modifications to system controls (such as wave–tidal–fluvial regime and sediment supply). In this context, geological control is understood to provide an inherited framework within which an estuary will evolve. This paper examines the morphodynamics of two sand-filled, but sediment-limited, mixed-energy estuaries of Loughros Bay in northwest Ireland. Analysis of ebb channel morphometry shows that estuaries can be divided into upper and lower estuary components, which appear to represent a down-valley increasing energy gradient. Examination of historical ebb channel migration reveals three morphodynamic zones delimited by a significant spatial variability in channel mobility that reflects the distribution of specific structural controls along the estuary and their influence on the changing energy gradient. Based upon analysis of low tide channel migration over the last 172 years, three phases of geomorphic response are identified. In Loughros More, the behaviour is characterised by a 19th century phase of steady-state equilibrium; a subsequent period of dynamic response to extrinsic (storm) forcing; and, most recently, adjustment to intrinsically forced changes in structural control. In Loughros Beg, the phases are comparable, but contrast specifically in inlet and ebb-tidal behaviour. This analysis illustrates discontinuities in decadal- to century-scale forcing and morphological response, identified here as complex response. It suggests that the sedimentary evolution of coastal systems that have no appreciable external sediment supply is potentially more strongly determined by local variability in system character than climate or sea-level driven mechanisms.

Modelling intertidal sediment transport for nutrient change and climate change scenarios

A model of intertidal sediment transport, including effects of bioturbation and biostabilisation, was applied to two transects on the east coast of England: Leverton (within the Wash) and Skeffling (in the Humber Estuary). The physical and biological parameters were chosen to represent four 1-year scenarios: a baseline year (1995), the same year but with estuarine nitrate inputs reduced by 50% and by 16%, and a year with climate change effects estimated for 2050. The changes in nitrate supply can potentially change microphytobenthos numbers within the surface sediment, which will then affect erodibility. The model results show a range of behaviour determined by bathymetry, external forcing and biotic state. When intertidal sediment transport is dominated by external sediment supply, the model produces highest deposition at the most offshore point, and there is greatest deposition in the winter and spring, when offshore sediment concentrations are highest. When intertidal processes dominate intertidal sediment transport, there is a peak of deposition at the high-shore level and erosion at mid-tide levels. The greatest deposition now occurs in winter and summer, when low chlorophyll levels mean that the sediment is most erodible. The Skeffling transect was dominated by intertidal processes for the baseline scenario and with a 16% reduction in nitrate. Under the climate change (warm winter) scenario, the Skeffling transect was dominated by external sediment supply. The scenario with 50% reduction in nitrate gave intermediate behaviour at Skeffling (intertidally driven during the winter and summer, and governed by offshore sediment supply during spring and autumn). The Leverton transect was dominated by offshore sediment supply for all the scenarios.

A model of sediment transport over an intertidal transect, comparing the influences of biological and physical factors

This paper compares modeled biotic and physical effects on intertidal sediment transport, using parameterizations that are based on laboratory and field experiments. A one‐dimensional model of an intertidal transect is constructed. The model is aligned cross shore and includes movement of water and suspended sediment. Within the model, tidal currents cause erosion, and bioturbation by the clam, Macoma balthica, alters the erodability of the bed sediment. The concentration of chlorophyll a in the surface sediment (which is an indicator of microphytobenthos density) alters the critical erosion velocity. External sediment supply is specified as an offshore suspended matter concentration. The model is applied within Spurn Bight (Humber Estuary, UK). The effects of various tide heights, biota densities, and external suspended sediment concentrations are investigated. Offshore sediment supply dominates the net deposition below midtide level, but factors affecting intertidal sediment erosion and deposition become important at higher shore levels. Changes in erosion or deposition caused by natural variation in biota densities are as large as those caused by changes in tidal range and currents over a spring‐neap cycle, or by doubling external supply. Seasonal variations in densities of stabilizing microphytobenthos can alter the magnitude of net deposition on the upper shore by a factor of two. Interannual variation in numbers of bioturbating clams can change net deposition by a factor of five. These results show that biotic influences on transport of sediment within the intertidal zone are significant and will play a role in determining sediment budgets over tidal to monthly timescales.

Response of the wadden sea to a rising sea level: a Predictive empirical model

A clue to the stratigraphic evolution in the case of a barrier island migrating up against a landward obstruction has recently been obtained from a detailed analysis of sediment patterns in the mesotidal backbarrier environment of the Wadden Sea (southern North Sea). Here the landward boundary is man-made and comprises a continuous dike line constructed in the wake of extensive land reclamation over the past 1000 years. Sea-level rise currently amounts to 25 cm/century. The system is further characterized by a lack of external sediment supply and a pronounced cross-shore energy gradient resulting in progressive landward fining of the backbarrier sediments. Adjacent to the dike the depositional system today is dominated by mixed flats with mud contents rarely exceeding 30%. Land reclamation has thus truncated the natural succession of sediment facies by eliminating mud flats and salt marshes. Contrary to expectations, the re-establishment of a complete but compressed facies sequence incorporating mud flats and salt marshes has not materialized. This would suggest that energy levels at the foot of the dike today are considerably higher than was previously the case along the undiked shoreline. A quantitative relative measure of backbarrier energy levels is the mean settling velocity of the sediment. In extreme cases the system has reached the stage where the finest sands with settling velocities below 0.3 cm s-1 (mean grain sizes < 0.1 mm) are being eliminated. It is postulated that, in the wake of continued sea-level rise and associated landward migration of the barrier island system, the sediment elimination process adjacent to the dike will continue and involve progressively coarser sediments. In the case of the Wadden Sea, the settling-lag and scour-lag mechanism by which fine-grained sediments are carried shoreward must be modified to incorporate an export loop for those particle sizes which have settling velocities below the local elimination threshold.

Sedimentology and budget of a Recent carbonate mound, Florida Keys

ABSTRACTThe sedimentology of a Recent carbonate mound is investigated to further our understanding of mound building communities, surface and subsurface mound sediments, and the overall sediment budget of mounds. Nine sedimentary facies of the surface of Tavernier mound, Florida Keys are described. These sediments are composed of Neogoniolithon, Halimeda, Porites, mollusc and foraminiferal grains, and lime mud. Muds rich in aragonite and high magnesian calcite show little mineralogical variation over the mound surface. Geochemical evidence suggests that the mud is mainly formed from breakdown of codiacean algae and Thalassia blade epibionts. Production rates of the facies are established from in situ growth rate experiments and standing‐crop surveys. Annual calcium carbonate production is c. 500gm‐2, intermediate between reef and other bay and lagoonal environment production rates in the Caribbean. The internal structure of the mound, studied from piston cores and sediment probes, indicates that seven facies can be identified. Five of these can be related to the present‐day facies, and occur in the upper part of the mound (gravel‐mound stage). The remaining two facies, characterized by molluscs and aragonite‐rich muds, occur in the lower part of the mound (mud‐mound stage), and are most similar to facies from typical Florida Bay mud mounds. Mangrove peats within the mound indicate former intertidal areas and C14 dates from these peats provide a time framework for mound sedimentation. The mound appears to have formed because of an initial valley in the Pleistocene surface which accumulated mud in a shallow embayment during the Holocene transgression.A sediment budget for the mound is presented which compares production rates from present‐day facies with subsurface sediment masses. During the mud mound stage production rates were similar to accumulation rates and the mound was similar to the present‐day mounds of Florida Bay. During the gravel mound stage (3400 yr BP‐present day), conditions were more normal marine and the establishment of Porites and Neogoniolithon on the mound increased production rates 10% over accumulation rates. This excess sediment is thought to be transported off the mound to the surrounding seabed. Models are proposed which divide carbonate mounds on the basis of internal versus external sediment supply. Comparisons are made with other Recent and ancient mounds. Similarities exist between the roles of the biotic components of late Palaeozoic mounds but major differences are found when structures and early diagenesis are compared.