Hopley, D., and Catt, P. C., 1988. Use of near infra red aerial photography for monitoring ecological changes to coral reef flats on the
Great Barrier Reef. In Proceedings 6th International Coral Reef
Symposium. Australia: Townsville, Vol. 3, pp. 503–508.
Hopley, D., and van Steveninck, A., 1977. Infra-red aerial photography of coral reefs. In Proceedings 3rd International Coral Reef
Symposium. Miami, Vol. 2, pp. 306–312.
Hopley, D., Parnell, K. E., and Isdale, P. J., 1989. The Great Barrier
Reef Marine Park: dimensions and regional patterns. Australian
Geographical Studies, 27, 47–66.
Jupp, D. L. B., Heggan, S. J., Mayo, K. K., Kendall, S. W., Bolton,
J. R., and Harrison, B. A., 1985. The BRIAN Handbook, Natural
Resource Series 3, Canberra, Australia: CSIRO.
Kuchler, D., 1984. Geomorphological Seperability: Landsat MSS
and Aerial Photographic Data, Heron Island Reef, Great Barrier
Reef. Unpublished PhD Thesis, Townsville, Australia: James
Cook University.
Linfoot, C., and Thamrongnawasawat, T., 1993. Global climate
change studies: developing techniques to map and monitor biological disturbances on reefs using digitised aerial photography.
Report to the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, Sir George
Fisher Centre for Tropical Marine Studies and Centre for Remote
Sensing, Townsville, Australia: James Cook University, 122 pp.
Mumby, P., and Green, E., 2000. Mapping coral reefs and
macroalgae. In Edwards, A. J. (ed.), Remote Sensing Handbook
for Tropical Coastal Management. Paris: UNESCO, pp. 155–174.
Rützler, K., 1978. Photogrammetry of reef environments by helium
balloon. In Stoddart, D. R., and Johannes, R. E. (eds.), Coral
Reefs: Research Methods. Paris: UNESCO, pp. 45–52.
Steers, J. A., 1945. Coral reefs and air photography. Geographical
Journal, 106, 232–235.
Teichert, C., and Fairbridge, R. W., 1948. The low isles of the Great
Barrier Reef: a new analysis. Geographical Journal, 111, 67–88.
Teichert, C., and Fairbridge, R. W., 1950. Photo interpretation of
coral reefs. Photogrammetric Engineering, 16, 744–755.
Thamrongnawasawat, T., and Catt, P., 1994. High resolution remote
sensing of reef biology: the application of digitized aerial photography to coral mapping. In Proceedings 7th Australasian
Remote Sensing Conference, Melbourne, pp. 680–697.
Thamrongnawasawat, T., and Hopley, D., 1995. Digitised aerial photography applied to small area reef management in Thailand. In
Bellwood, O., Choat, C., and Saxena, N. (eds.), Recent Advances
in Marine Science and Technology 1994, pp. 365–394.
Umbgrove, J. H. F., 1928. De Koralriffen in de Baai van Batavia
(with summary in English). Wetensch Meded Dienst v.d.
Mijnbouw in Ned-Indie, 7, 1–62.
Umbgrove, J. H. F., 1929. De Koralriffen der Duizand-Eilanden
(Java Zee) Wetensch Meded Dienst v.d. Mijnbouw in Ned-Indie,
12, 1–47.
Cross-references
Remote Sensing
AGASSIZ, ALEXANDER (1835–1910)
Eberhard Gischler
Institut fuer Geowissenschaften, Frankfurt am Main,
Germany
Alexander Agassiz was born on 17 December 1835 in
Neuchâtel, Switzerland. He was the son of the famous naturalist Louis Agassiz. A. Agassiz made a distinguished
career as reef scientist, zoologist, mining engineer, and
science administrator in the US (Dobbs, 2005). After
receiving a degree in engineering and chemistry, he studied biology at Harvard University from 1865 to 1869.
Since 1860, Agassiz had been working at the Museum of
Comparative Zoology as an assistant and since 1875 as
curator. His field was marine invertebrates and he was
especially interested in echinoderms, annelids, cnidarians,
and coral reefs. Interestingly, starting in 1865, Agassiz
made a second career in mining because he had inherited
the Calumet Copper Mine in Michigan. Eventually, he
became one of the richest Americans and financed his
own research expeditions starting in mid-1870ies, which
led him to almost every major reef area on earth. Expeditions went to Florida, the Bahamas, Bermuda, Cuba, the
Yucatán, Galápagos, Hawaii, Fiji, Tonga, the Ellice
Islands (now: Tuvalu), Marshall Islands, Gilbert Islands,
Caroline Islands, the Tuamotus, Cook Islands, Guam,
Japan, the Maldives, and the Great Barrier Reef. He
published six major monographs on reefs (Agassiz,
1885, 1889, 1894, 1899, 1903a, b) and numerous shorter
papers. A summary of his work can be found in two relatively brief but instructive articles (Agassiz, 1900, 1903c).
Agassiz was a follower of the Murray (1889) theory proposing that reefs grew from a submarine plateau to the
water surface, opposing Darwin’s (1842) subsidence theory. He proposed that denudation and submarine erosion
can create shallow platforms from which reefs can accrete.
For example, the Maldives archipelago was used by
Agassiz in support of this model. Some barrier reef
lagoons were formed through erosion, e.g., in the Society
Islands, Fijis, Carolines, according to Agassiz. He also
considered moderate recent uplift as important agent of
modern reef formation, e.g., in the Tuamotu archipelago.
When summarizing his observations on reefs, Agassiz
erred in interpreting exposed limestone as well as shallow
submarine rock ledges as remnants of denuded and eroded
fossil (Tertiary) limestone. Much later, many of these outcrops and submarine terraces were radiometrically dated
and turned out to be of late Quaternary age. Even so,
Agassiz’s observations on reefs worldwide served as
a basis for numerous later studies, and, he critically challenged Darwin’s subsidence theory thereby stimulating
subsequent research that identified the importance of factors such as erosion and sea-level change for reef development. After being a curator in Harvard for 23 years,
Agassiz became the head of the Museum of Comparative
Zoology for 10 years. He also served as President of the
US National Academy of Science for 6 years
(1901–1907). A. Agassiz died on 23 March 1910 aboard
a ship sailing from Southampton to New York.
Bibliography
Agassiz, A., 1885. The Tortugas and Florida reefs. Memoirs
American Academy of Arts and Science, 2, 107–134.
Agassiz, A., 1889. The coral reefs of the Hawaiian islands. Bulletin
of the Museum of Comparative Zoology, 17, 121–170.
AGASSIZ, ALEXANDER (1835–1910)
15
Great Barrier Reef. In Proceedings 6th International Coral Reef
Symposium. Australia: Townsville, Vol. 3, pp. 503–508.
Hopley, D., and van Steveninck, A., 1977. Infra-red aerial photography of coral reefs. In Proceedings 3rd International Coral Reef
Symposium. Miami, Vol. 2, pp. 306–312.
Hopley, D., Parnell, K. E., and Isdale, P. J., 1989. The Great Barrier
Reef Marine Park: dimensions and regional patterns. Australian
Geographical Studies, 27, 47–66.
Jupp, D. L. B., Heggan, S. J., Mayo, K. K., Kendall, S. W., Bolton,
J. R., and Harrison, B. A., 1985. The BRIAN Handbook, Natural
Resource Series 3, Canberra, Australia: CSIRO.
Kuchler, D., 1984. Geomorphological Seperability: Landsat MSS
and Aerial Photographic Data, Heron Island Reef, Great Barrier
Reef. Unpublished PhD Thesis, Townsville, Australia: James
Cook University.
Linfoot, C., and Thamrongnawasawat, T., 1993. Global climate
change studies: developing techniques to map and monitor biological disturbances on reefs using digitised aerial photography.
Report to the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, Sir George
Fisher Centre for Tropical Marine Studies and Centre for Remote
Sensing, Townsville, Australia: James Cook University, 122 pp.
Mumby, P., and Green, E., 2000. Mapping coral reefs and
macroalgae. In Edwards, A. J. (ed.), Remote Sensing Handbook
for Tropical Coastal Management. Paris: UNESCO, pp. 155–174.
Rützler, K., 1978. Photogrammetry of reef environments by helium
balloon. In Stoddart, D. R., and Johannes, R. E. (eds.), Coral
Reefs: Research Methods. Paris: UNESCO, pp. 45–52.
Steers, J. A., 1945. Coral reefs and air photography. Geographical
Journal, 106, 232–235.
Teichert, C., and Fairbridge, R. W., 1948. The low isles of the Great
Barrier Reef: a new analysis. Geographical Journal, 111, 67–88.
Teichert, C., and Fairbridge, R. W., 1950. Photo interpretation of
coral reefs. Photogrammetric Engineering, 16, 744–755.
Thamrongnawasawat, T., and Catt, P., 1994. High resolution remote
sensing of reef biology: the application of digitized aerial photography to coral mapping. In Proceedings 7th Australasian
Remote Sensing Conference, Melbourne, pp. 680–697.
Thamrongnawasawat, T., and Hopley, D., 1995. Digitised aerial photography applied to small area reef management in Thailand. In
Bellwood, O., Choat, C., and Saxena, N. (eds.), Recent Advances
in Marine Science and Technology 1994, pp. 365–394.
Umbgrove, J. H. F., 1928. De Koralriffen in de Baai van Batavia
(with summary in English). Wetensch Meded Dienst v.d.
Mijnbouw in Ned-Indie, 7, 1–62.
Umbgrove, J. H. F., 1929. De Koralriffen der Duizand-Eilanden
(Java Zee) Wetensch Meded Dienst v.d. Mijnbouw in Ned-Indie,
12, 1–47.
Cross-references
Remote Sensing
AGASSIZ, ALEXANDER (1835–1910)
Eberhard Gischler
Institut fuer Geowissenschaften, Frankfurt am Main,
Germany
Alexander Agassiz was born on 17 December 1835 in
Neuchâtel, Switzerland. He was the son of the famous naturalist Louis Agassiz. A. Agassiz made a distinguished
career as reef scientist, zoologist, mining engineer, and
science administrator in the US (Dobbs, 2005). After
receiving a degree in engineering and chemistry, he studied biology at Harvard University from 1865 to 1869.
Since 1860, Agassiz had been working at the Museum of
Comparative Zoology as an assistant and since 1875 as
curator. His field was marine invertebrates and he was
especially interested in echinoderms, annelids, cnidarians,
and coral reefs. Interestingly, starting in 1865, Agassiz
made a second career in mining because he had inherited
the Calumet Copper Mine in Michigan. Eventually, he
became one of the richest Americans and financed his
own research expeditions starting in mid-1870ies, which
led him to almost every major reef area on earth. Expeditions went to Florida, the Bahamas, Bermuda, Cuba, the
Yucatán, Galápagos, Hawaii, Fiji, Tonga, the Ellice
Islands (now: Tuvalu), Marshall Islands, Gilbert Islands,
Caroline Islands, the Tuamotus, Cook Islands, Guam,
Japan, the Maldives, and the Great Barrier Reef. He
published six major monographs on reefs (Agassiz,
1885, 1889, 1894, 1899, 1903a, b) and numerous shorter
papers. A summary of his work can be found in two relatively brief but instructive articles (Agassiz, 1900, 1903c).
Agassiz was a follower of the Murray (1889) theory proposing that reefs grew from a submarine plateau to the
water surface, opposing Darwin’s (1842) subsidence theory. He proposed that denudation and submarine erosion
can create shallow platforms from which reefs can accrete.
For example, the Maldives archipelago was used by
Agassiz in support of this model. Some barrier reef
lagoons were formed through erosion, e.g., in the Society
Islands, Fijis, Carolines, according to Agassiz. He also
considered moderate recent uplift as important agent of
modern reef formation, e.g., in the Tuamotu archipelago.
When summarizing his observations on reefs, Agassiz
erred in interpreting exposed limestone as well as shallow
submarine rock ledges as remnants of denuded and eroded
fossil (Tertiary) limestone. Much later, many of these outcrops and submarine terraces were radiometrically dated
and turned out to be of late Quaternary age. Even so,
Agassiz’s observations on reefs worldwide served as
a basis for numerous later studies, and, he critically challenged Darwin’s subsidence theory thereby stimulating
subsequent research that identified the importance of factors such as erosion and sea-level change for reef development. After being a curator in Harvard for 23 years,
Agassiz became the head of the Museum of Comparative
Zoology for 10 years. He also served as President of the
US National Academy of Science for 6 years
(1901–1907). A. Agassiz died on 23 March 1910 aboard
a ship sailing from Southampton to New York.
Bibliography
Agassiz, A., 1885. The Tortugas and Florida reefs. Memoirs
American Academy of Arts and Science, 2, 107–134.
Agassiz, A., 1889. The coral reefs of the Hawaiian islands. Bulletin
of the Museum of Comparative Zoology, 17, 121–170.
AGASSIZ, ALEXANDER (1835–1910)
15