Conclusions
Reef building in the Mariana Islands is confined to the
inactive southern Arc from Guam to Farallon de
Medinilla.
The dominant coral reef type in the Marianas is fringing
reefs, with barrier reefs only at Guam (Cocos Lagoon)
and Saipan (Tanapag Lagoon).
The northern Marianas are volcanically active and
corals occur there, but tectonic instability and volcanic
activity have precluded reef building.
Reef building in the southern Marianas likely dates
back to the Miocene, but no reef edifice has yet been
found (corals and reefal fragments only).
Late Holocene reef building in the southern Marianas is
constrained by the presence of an early Holocene reef
episode (Merizo Limestone on Guam, Milencattan
Limestone on Rota, and younger part of Tanapag Limestone on Saipan) that clearly shows a mid-Holocene
sea-level overshoot.
Bibliography
Asami, R., Yamada, T., Iryu, Y., Quinn, T. M., Meyer, C. P., and
Paulay, G., 2005. Interannual and decadal variability of the western
Pacific sea surface conditions for the years 1787–2000: reconstruction based on stable isotope record from a Guam coral. Journal of
Geophysical Research, 110, C05018, doi:10.1029/2004JC002555.
Bell, S. C., and Siegrist, H. G. Jr., 1988. Patterns in reef diagenesis:
Rota, Mariana Islands. Proceedings of the 6th International
Coral Reef Symposium, Australia, 3, 547–552.
Carruth, R. L., 2003. Ground-water resources of Saipan, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. US Geological Survey
Water Resources Investigations Report 03-4178.
Carruth, R. L., 2005. Construction, geologic, and hydrologic data
from five exploratory wells on Rota, Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands, 1999. US Geological Survey OpenFile Report 2005-1042, 40 pp.
Cloud, P. E., 1959. Geology of Saipan Mariana Islands, Part 4. Submarine Topography and Shoal Water Ecology. US Geological
Survey Professional Paper 280-K, 361–445, plates.
Cloud, P. E., Schmidt, R. G., and Burke, H. W., 1956. Geology of
Saipan Mariana Islands, Part 1. General Geology: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 280-A, 126 pp.
Dickinson, W. R., 2000. Hydro-isostatic and tectonic influences on
emergent Holocene paleoshorelines in the Mariana Islands, Western Pacific Ocean. Journal of Coastal Research, 16(3), 735–746.
Doan, D. B., Burke, H. W., May, H. G., and Stensland, C. H., 1960.
Military geology of Tinian, Mariana Islands. Chief of Engineers,
U.S. Army, variously paginated.
Easton, W. H., Ku, T. L., and Randall, R. H., 1978. Recent reefs and
shorelines of Guam. Micronesica, 14, 1–11.
Emery, K. O., 1962. Marine Geology of Guam. US Geological Survey Professional Paper, 403-B, 76 pp.
Gingerich, S. B., 2002. Geohydrology and numerical simulations of
alternative pumping distributions and the effects of drought on
the ground-water flow system of Tinian, Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands. US Geological Survey Water
Resources Investigations Report, 03-4178.
Gingerich, S. B., 2003. Hydrologic resources of Guam. US Geological Survey Water Resources Investigations Report, 03-4126, 3 pp.
Houk, P., and van Woesik, R., 2008, Dynamics of shallow-water
assemblages in the Saipan Lagoon. Marine Ecology Progress
Series, 356, 39–50.
Kayanne, H., Ishii, T., Matsumoto, E., and Yonekura, N., 1993. Late
Holocene sea-level change on Rota and Guam, Mariana Islands,
and its constraints on geophysical predictions. Quaternary
Research, 40, 189–200.
Meijer, A., and Reagan, M., 1981. Petrology and geochemistry of
the island of Sarigan in the Mariana Arc; Calc-alcaline volcanism in an oceanic setting. Contributions to Mineralogy and
Petrology, 77, 337–354.
Mink, J. F., and Vacher, H. L., 1997. Hydrogeology of northern
Guam. In Vacher, H. L., and Quinn, T. (eds.), Geology and
Hydrogeology of Carbonate Islands. Amsterdam: Elsevier,
Vol. 54, pp. 743–761.
Pirazzoli, P. A., and Montaggioni, L. F., 1988. Holocene sealevel
changes in French Polynesia. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 68, 153–175.
Randall, R. H., 1979. Geologic features within the Guam seashore
study area. University of Guam Marine Laboratory Technical
Report 55.
Randall, R. H., 1985. Habitat geomorphology and community
structure of corals in the Mariana Islands. Proceedings of the
5th International Coral Reef Congress, Tahiti, 6, 261–266.
Randall, R. H. 1995. Biogeography of reef-building corals in the
Mariana and Palau islands in relation to back-arc rifting and
the formation of the Eastern Philippine Sea. Natural History
Research, 3(2), 193–210.
Randall, R. H., and Siegrist, G. H. Jr., 1988. Geomorphology of the
fringing reefs of northern Guam in response to Holocene sea
level changes. Proceedings of the 6th International Coral Reef
Symposium, Australia, 3, 473–477.
Randall, R. H., Siegrist, H. G., and Siegrist, A. W., 1984. Community structure of reef-building corals on a recently raised Holocene reef on Guam, Mariana Islands. Paleontographica
Americana, 54, 394–398.
Reagan, M. K., and Meijer, A., 1984. Geology and geochemistry of
early arc-volcanic rocks from Guam. Geological Society of
America Bulletin, 95, 701–713.
Schlanger, S. O., 1964. Petrology of limestones of Guam. US Geological Survey Professional Paper, 403-D, 52 pp.
Siegrist, H. G., and Randall, R. H., 1985. Community structure and
petrography of an emergent Holocene reef limestone on Guam.
Proceedings of the 5th International Coral Reef Congress,
Tahiti, 6, 563–568.
Siegrist, H. G., and Randall, R. H., 1992. Carbonate geology of
Guam. Proceedings of the 7th International Coral Reef Symposium, Guam, 2, 1195–1216.
Siegrist, A. W., Randall, R. H., and Siegrist, H. G., 1984a.
Functional morphological group variation within an emergent
Holocene reef, Ylig Point, Guam. Paleontographica Americana,
54, 390–393.
Siegrist, H. G., Randall, R. H., and Siegrist, A. W., 1984b.
Petrography of the Merizo Limestone, an emergent Holocene
reef, Ylig Point, Guam. Paleontographica Americana, 54,
399–405.
Siegrist, H. G., Randall, R. H., and Edwards, C. A., 1991. Shallow
reef-front detrital sediments from the Northern Mariana Islands.
Micronesica, 24, 231–248.
Sugawara, S., 1934. Topography, geology, and coral reefs on
Rota Island. MSc thesis, Tohuku Imperial University
(in Japanese).
Wolanski, E., Richmond, R. H., Davis, G., and Bonito, V., 2003.
Water and fine sediment dynamics in transient river plumes in
a small, reef-fringed bay, Guam. Estuarine Coastal and Shelf
Science, 56, 1029–1040.
Wolanski, E., Richmond, R. H., and McCook, L., 2004. A model
of the effects of land-based, human activities on the health of
coral reefs in the Great Barrier Reef and in Fouha Bay, Guam,
Micronesia. Journal of Marine Systems, 46, 133–144.
670
MARIANA ISLANDS, CORAL REEF GEOLOGY
Reef building in the Mariana Islands is confined to the
inactive southern Arc from Guam to Farallon de
Medinilla.
The dominant coral reef type in the Marianas is fringing
reefs, with barrier reefs only at Guam (Cocos Lagoon)
and Saipan (Tanapag Lagoon).
The northern Marianas are volcanically active and
corals occur there, but tectonic instability and volcanic
activity have precluded reef building.
Reef building in the southern Marianas likely dates
back to the Miocene, but no reef edifice has yet been
found (corals and reefal fragments only).
Late Holocene reef building in the southern Marianas is
constrained by the presence of an early Holocene reef
episode (Merizo Limestone on Guam, Milencattan
Limestone on Rota, and younger part of Tanapag Limestone on Saipan) that clearly shows a mid-Holocene
sea-level overshoot.
Bibliography
Asami, R., Yamada, T., Iryu, Y., Quinn, T. M., Meyer, C. P., and
Paulay, G., 2005. Interannual and decadal variability of the western
Pacific sea surface conditions for the years 1787–2000: reconstruction based on stable isotope record from a Guam coral. Journal of
Geophysical Research, 110, C05018, doi:10.1029/2004JC002555.
Bell, S. C., and Siegrist, H. G. Jr., 1988. Patterns in reef diagenesis:
Rota, Mariana Islands. Proceedings of the 6th International
Coral Reef Symposium, Australia, 3, 547–552.
Carruth, R. L., 2003. Ground-water resources of Saipan, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. US Geological Survey
Water Resources Investigations Report 03-4178.
Carruth, R. L., 2005. Construction, geologic, and hydrologic data
from five exploratory wells on Rota, Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands, 1999. US Geological Survey OpenFile Report 2005-1042, 40 pp.
Cloud, P. E., 1959. Geology of Saipan Mariana Islands, Part 4. Submarine Topography and Shoal Water Ecology. US Geological
Survey Professional Paper 280-K, 361–445, plates.
Cloud, P. E., Schmidt, R. G., and Burke, H. W., 1956. Geology of
Saipan Mariana Islands, Part 1. General Geology: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 280-A, 126 pp.
Dickinson, W. R., 2000. Hydro-isostatic and tectonic influences on
emergent Holocene paleoshorelines in the Mariana Islands, Western Pacific Ocean. Journal of Coastal Research, 16(3), 735–746.
Doan, D. B., Burke, H. W., May, H. G., and Stensland, C. H., 1960.
Military geology of Tinian, Mariana Islands. Chief of Engineers,
U.S. Army, variously paginated.
Easton, W. H., Ku, T. L., and Randall, R. H., 1978. Recent reefs and
shorelines of Guam. Micronesica, 14, 1–11.
Emery, K. O., 1962. Marine Geology of Guam. US Geological Survey Professional Paper, 403-B, 76 pp.
Gingerich, S. B., 2002. Geohydrology and numerical simulations of
alternative pumping distributions and the effects of drought on
the ground-water flow system of Tinian, Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands. US Geological Survey Water
Resources Investigations Report, 03-4178.
Gingerich, S. B., 2003. Hydrologic resources of Guam. US Geological Survey Water Resources Investigations Report, 03-4126, 3 pp.
Houk, P., and van Woesik, R., 2008, Dynamics of shallow-water
assemblages in the Saipan Lagoon. Marine Ecology Progress
Series, 356, 39–50.
Kayanne, H., Ishii, T., Matsumoto, E., and Yonekura, N., 1993. Late
Holocene sea-level change on Rota and Guam, Mariana Islands,
and its constraints on geophysical predictions. Quaternary
Research, 40, 189–200.
Meijer, A., and Reagan, M., 1981. Petrology and geochemistry of
the island of Sarigan in the Mariana Arc; Calc-alcaline volcanism in an oceanic setting. Contributions to Mineralogy and
Petrology, 77, 337–354.
Mink, J. F., and Vacher, H. L., 1997. Hydrogeology of northern
Guam. In Vacher, H. L., and Quinn, T. (eds.), Geology and
Hydrogeology of Carbonate Islands. Amsterdam: Elsevier,
Vol. 54, pp. 743–761.
Pirazzoli, P. A., and Montaggioni, L. F., 1988. Holocene sealevel
changes in French Polynesia. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 68, 153–175.
Randall, R. H., 1979. Geologic features within the Guam seashore
study area. University of Guam Marine Laboratory Technical
Report 55.
Randall, R. H., 1985. Habitat geomorphology and community
structure of corals in the Mariana Islands. Proceedings of the
5th International Coral Reef Congress, Tahiti, 6, 261–266.
Randall, R. H. 1995. Biogeography of reef-building corals in the
Mariana and Palau islands in relation to back-arc rifting and
the formation of the Eastern Philippine Sea. Natural History
Research, 3(2), 193–210.
Randall, R. H., and Siegrist, G. H. Jr., 1988. Geomorphology of the
fringing reefs of northern Guam in response to Holocene sea
level changes. Proceedings of the 6th International Coral Reef
Symposium, Australia, 3, 473–477.
Randall, R. H., Siegrist, H. G., and Siegrist, A. W., 1984. Community structure of reef-building corals on a recently raised Holocene reef on Guam, Mariana Islands. Paleontographica
Americana, 54, 394–398.
Reagan, M. K., and Meijer, A., 1984. Geology and geochemistry of
early arc-volcanic rocks from Guam. Geological Society of
America Bulletin, 95, 701–713.
Schlanger, S. O., 1964. Petrology of limestones of Guam. US Geological Survey Professional Paper, 403-D, 52 pp.
Siegrist, H. G., and Randall, R. H., 1985. Community structure and
petrography of an emergent Holocene reef limestone on Guam.
Proceedings of the 5th International Coral Reef Congress,
Tahiti, 6, 563–568.
Siegrist, H. G., and Randall, R. H., 1992. Carbonate geology of
Guam. Proceedings of the 7th International Coral Reef Symposium, Guam, 2, 1195–1216.
Siegrist, A. W., Randall, R. H., and Siegrist, H. G., 1984a.
Functional morphological group variation within an emergent
Holocene reef, Ylig Point, Guam. Paleontographica Americana,
54, 390–393.
Siegrist, H. G., Randall, R. H., and Siegrist, A. W., 1984b.
Petrography of the Merizo Limestone, an emergent Holocene
reef, Ylig Point, Guam. Paleontographica Americana, 54,
399–405.
Siegrist, H. G., Randall, R. H., and Edwards, C. A., 1991. Shallow
reef-front detrital sediments from the Northern Mariana Islands.
Micronesica, 24, 231–248.
Sugawara, S., 1934. Topography, geology, and coral reefs on
Rota Island. MSc thesis, Tohuku Imperial University
(in Japanese).
Wolanski, E., Richmond, R. H., Davis, G., and Bonito, V., 2003.
Water and fine sediment dynamics in transient river plumes in
a small, reef-fringed bay, Guam. Estuarine Coastal and Shelf
Science, 56, 1029–1040.
Wolanski, E., Richmond, R. H., and McCook, L., 2004. A model
of the effects of land-based, human activities on the health of
coral reefs in the Great Barrier Reef and in Fouha Bay, Guam,
Micronesia. Journal of Marine Systems, 46, 133–144.
670
MARIANA ISLANDS, CORAL REEF GEOLOGY