growth of calcareous organisms on surrounding reefs and
as that sediment is transported onshore. Those parts of
atolls that are most resilient, and which can be used sustainably, need to be enhanced by various levels of cultural,
or other socioeconomic resilience (Connell, 2003), to
reduce the likelihood that atoll communities will collapse
in the face of climate or sea-level change (Barnett and
Adger, 2003).
Summary
Atolls represent some of the most remote and lowest-lying
land on the planet. Each atoll comprises a reef rim that
encloses a lagoon, which may be completed infilled on
the smallest table reefs, but can be tens of meters deep
on the largest. Lagoons vary considerably in the extent
to which they are connected to the surrounding ocean.
Carbonate sediment is produced by the growth of reef
organisms, and it is swept by oceanic processes, particularly waves, toward the lagoon. On the rims of many atolls,
sediment has accumulated as reef islands, which have been
colonized first by salt-tolerant plants and in many case by
trees. A freshwater lens underlies the larger islands, and
these have attracted human settlements often resulting in
coconut plantations and the introduction of other plants
and animals. Human impacts threaten the integrity of both
terrestrial and marine ecosystems on atolls. Climate change
appears likely to exacerbate many of these problems unless
a more sustainable approach is adopted to augment the natural resilience of atoll ecosystems.
Bibliography
Adjas, A., Masse, J.-P., and Montaggioni, L. F., 1990. Fine-grained
carbonates in nearly closed reef environments: Mataiva and
Takapoto atolls, Central Pacific Ocean. Sedimentary Geology,
67, 115–132.
Agassiz, A., 1903a. The coral reefs of the tropical Pacific. Memoirs of
the Museum of Comparative Zoology Harvard College, 28, 1–410.
Agassiz, A., 1903b. The coral reefs of the Maldives. Memoirs of the
Museum of Comparative Zoology Harvard College, 29, 1–168.
Andréfouët, S., Claereboudt, M., Matsakis, P., Pagès, J., and
Dufour, P., 2001. Typology of atoll rims in Tuamotu Archipelago
(French Polynesia) at landscape scale using SPOT HRV images.
International Journal of Remote Sensing, 22, 987–1004.
Andréfouët, S., Kramer, P., Torres-Pulliza, D., Joyce, K. E., Hochberg,
E. J., Garza-Pérez, R., Mumby, P. J., Riegl, B., Yamano, Y., White,
W. H., Zubia, M., Brock, J. C., Phinn, S. R., Naseer, A., Hatcher,
B. G., and Muller-Karger, F. E., 2003. Multi-site evaluation of
IKONOS data for classification of tropical coral reef environments. Remote Sensing of Environment, 88, 128–143.
Arnold, E. N., 1976. Fossil reptiles from Aldabra Atoll, Indian Ocean.
Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History), 29, 85–116.
Ayers, J. F., and Vacher, H. L., 1986. Hydrogeology of an atoll
island: a conceptual model from detailed study of a Micronesian
example. Ground Water, 24, 185–198.
Baines, G. B. K., and McLean, R. F., 1976. Sequential studies of
hurricane deposit evolution at Funafuti Atoll. Marine Geology,
21, M1–M7.
Baines, G. B. K., Beveridge, P. J., and Maragos, J. E., 1974. Storms
and island building at Funafuti Atoll, Ellice Islands. Proceedings
of the 2nd International Coral Reef Symposium, 2, 485–496.
Barnett, J., and Adger, N., 2003. Climate dangers and atoll countries. Climatic Change, 61, 321–337.
Barry, S. J., Cowell, P. J., and Woodroffe, C. D., 2007.
A morphodynamic model of reef-island development on atolls.
Sedimentary Geology, 197, 47–63.
Barry, S. J., Cowell, P. J., and Woodroffe, C. D., 2008. Growthlimited size of atoll-islets: morphodynamics in nature. Marine
Geology, 247, 159–177.
Bayliss-Smith, T. P., 1988. The role of hurricanes in the development of reef islands, Ontong Java Atoll, Solomon Islands.
Geographical Journal, 154, 377–391.
Bellwood, P., 1987. The impact of sea level changes on Pacific prehistory. The Journal of Pacific History, 22, 106–108.
Blumenstock, D. I., 1961. A report on typhoon effects upon Jaluit
Atoll. Atoll Research Bulletin, 75, 1–105.
Bourrouilh-Le Jan, F. G., 1998. The role of high-energy events (hurricanes and/or tsunamis) in the sedimentation, diagenesis and
karst initiation of tropical shallow water carbonate platforms
and atolls. Sedimentary Geology, 118, 3–36.
Braithwaite, C. J. R., Taylor, J. D., and Kennedy, W. J., 1973. The
evolution of an atoll: the depositional and erosional history of
Aldabra. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of
London. B, Biological Sciences, 266, 307–340.
Bryan, E. H. Jr., 1953. Checklist of atolls. Atoll Resources Bulletin,
19, 1–38.
Buddemeier, R. W., and Oberdorfer, J. A., 1986. Internal hydrology
and geochemistry of coral reefs and atoll islands: key to diagenetic variations. In Schroeder, J. H., and Purser, B. H. (eds.), Reef
Diagenesis. Berlin: Springer-Verlag, pp. 91–111.
Callaghan, D. P., Nielson, P., Cartwright, N., Gourlay, M., and
Baldock, T. E., 2006. Atoll lagoon flushing forced by waves.
Coastal Engineering, 53, 691–704.
Camoin, G. F., Ebren, Ph., Eisenhauer, A., Bard, E., and Faure, G.,
2001. A 300 000-yr coral reef record of sea level changes, Mururoa
atoll (Tuamotu archipelago, French Polynesia). Palaeogeography,
Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 175, 325–341.
Chevalier, J.-P., Denizot, M., Mougin, J.-L., Plessis, Y., and Salvat,
B., 1969. Etude géomorphologique et bionomique de l’atoll de
Mururoa (Tuamotu). Cahiers du Pacifique, 13, 9–144.
Church, J. A., White, N. J., and Hunter, J. R., 2006. Sea-level rise at
tropical Pacific and Indian Ocean islands. Global and Planetary
Change, 53, 155–168.
Cloud, P. E., 1952. Preliminary report on geology and marine environments of Onotoa Atoll, Gilbert Islands. Atoll Research
Bulletin, 12, 1–73.
Colin, P. L., 1986. Benthic community distribution in the Enewetak
Atoll lagoon, Marshall Islands. Bulletin of Marine Science, 38,
129–143.
Collen, J. D., and Garton, D. W., 2004. Larger foraminifera and sedimentation around Fongafale Island, Funafuti Atoll, Tuvalu.
Coral Reefs, 23, 445–454.
Connell, J., 2003. Losing ground? Tuvalu, the greenhouse effect
and the garbage can. Asia Pacific Viewpoint, 44, 89–106.
Cotton, C. A., 1948. The present-day status of coral reef theories.
New Zealand Science Review, 6, 111–113.
Daly, R. A., 1934. The Changing World of the Ice Age. New Haven:
Yale University Press, 271 pp.
Darwin, C., 1842. The Structure and Distribution of Coral Reefs.
London: Smith, Elder and Co., 214 pp.
David, T. W. E., and Sweet, G., 1904. The geology of Funafuti.
In The Atoll of Funafuti: Borings into a Coral Reef and the
Results. The Royal Society, London, pp. 61–124.
Davis, W. M., 1928. The coral reef problem. American Geographical Society, Special Publication, 9, 596 pp.
Dawson, E. Y., 1959. Changes in Palmyra Atoll and its vegetation
through the activities of man, 1913–1958. Pacific Naturalist,
1, 1–51.
ATOLLS
67
as that sediment is transported onshore. Those parts of
atolls that are most resilient, and which can be used sustainably, need to be enhanced by various levels of cultural,
or other socioeconomic resilience (Connell, 2003), to
reduce the likelihood that atoll communities will collapse
in the face of climate or sea-level change (Barnett and
Adger, 2003).
Summary
Atolls represent some of the most remote and lowest-lying
land on the planet. Each atoll comprises a reef rim that
encloses a lagoon, which may be completed infilled on
the smallest table reefs, but can be tens of meters deep
on the largest. Lagoons vary considerably in the extent
to which they are connected to the surrounding ocean.
Carbonate sediment is produced by the growth of reef
organisms, and it is swept by oceanic processes, particularly waves, toward the lagoon. On the rims of many atolls,
sediment has accumulated as reef islands, which have been
colonized first by salt-tolerant plants and in many case by
trees. A freshwater lens underlies the larger islands, and
these have attracted human settlements often resulting in
coconut plantations and the introduction of other plants
and animals. Human impacts threaten the integrity of both
terrestrial and marine ecosystems on atolls. Climate change
appears likely to exacerbate many of these problems unless
a more sustainable approach is adopted to augment the natural resilience of atoll ecosystems.
Bibliography
Adjas, A., Masse, J.-P., and Montaggioni, L. F., 1990. Fine-grained
carbonates in nearly closed reef environments: Mataiva and
Takapoto atolls, Central Pacific Ocean. Sedimentary Geology,
67, 115–132.
Agassiz, A., 1903a. The coral reefs of the tropical Pacific. Memoirs of
the Museum of Comparative Zoology Harvard College, 28, 1–410.
Agassiz, A., 1903b. The coral reefs of the Maldives. Memoirs of the
Museum of Comparative Zoology Harvard College, 29, 1–168.
Andréfouët, S., Claereboudt, M., Matsakis, P., Pagès, J., and
Dufour, P., 2001. Typology of atoll rims in Tuamotu Archipelago
(French Polynesia) at landscape scale using SPOT HRV images.
International Journal of Remote Sensing, 22, 987–1004.
Andréfouët, S., Kramer, P., Torres-Pulliza, D., Joyce, K. E., Hochberg,
E. J., Garza-Pérez, R., Mumby, P. J., Riegl, B., Yamano, Y., White,
W. H., Zubia, M., Brock, J. C., Phinn, S. R., Naseer, A., Hatcher,
B. G., and Muller-Karger, F. E., 2003. Multi-site evaluation of
IKONOS data for classification of tropical coral reef environments. Remote Sensing of Environment, 88, 128–143.
Arnold, E. N., 1976. Fossil reptiles from Aldabra Atoll, Indian Ocean.
Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History), 29, 85–116.
Ayers, J. F., and Vacher, H. L., 1986. Hydrogeology of an atoll
island: a conceptual model from detailed study of a Micronesian
example. Ground Water, 24, 185–198.
Baines, G. B. K., and McLean, R. F., 1976. Sequential studies of
hurricane deposit evolution at Funafuti Atoll. Marine Geology,
21, M1–M7.
Baines, G. B. K., Beveridge, P. J., and Maragos, J. E., 1974. Storms
and island building at Funafuti Atoll, Ellice Islands. Proceedings
of the 2nd International Coral Reef Symposium, 2, 485–496.
Barnett, J., and Adger, N., 2003. Climate dangers and atoll countries. Climatic Change, 61, 321–337.
Barry, S. J., Cowell, P. J., and Woodroffe, C. D., 2007.
A morphodynamic model of reef-island development on atolls.
Sedimentary Geology, 197, 47–63.
Barry, S. J., Cowell, P. J., and Woodroffe, C. D., 2008. Growthlimited size of atoll-islets: morphodynamics in nature. Marine
Geology, 247, 159–177.
Bayliss-Smith, T. P., 1988. The role of hurricanes in the development of reef islands, Ontong Java Atoll, Solomon Islands.
Geographical Journal, 154, 377–391.
Bellwood, P., 1987. The impact of sea level changes on Pacific prehistory. The Journal of Pacific History, 22, 106–108.
Blumenstock, D. I., 1961. A report on typhoon effects upon Jaluit
Atoll. Atoll Research Bulletin, 75, 1–105.
Bourrouilh-Le Jan, F. G., 1998. The role of high-energy events (hurricanes and/or tsunamis) in the sedimentation, diagenesis and
karst initiation of tropical shallow water carbonate platforms
and atolls. Sedimentary Geology, 118, 3–36.
Braithwaite, C. J. R., Taylor, J. D., and Kennedy, W. J., 1973. The
evolution of an atoll: the depositional and erosional history of
Aldabra. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of
London. B, Biological Sciences, 266, 307–340.
Bryan, E. H. Jr., 1953. Checklist of atolls. Atoll Resources Bulletin,
19, 1–38.
Buddemeier, R. W., and Oberdorfer, J. A., 1986. Internal hydrology
and geochemistry of coral reefs and atoll islands: key to diagenetic variations. In Schroeder, J. H., and Purser, B. H. (eds.), Reef
Diagenesis. Berlin: Springer-Verlag, pp. 91–111.
Callaghan, D. P., Nielson, P., Cartwright, N., Gourlay, M., and
Baldock, T. E., 2006. Atoll lagoon flushing forced by waves.
Coastal Engineering, 53, 691–704.
Camoin, G. F., Ebren, Ph., Eisenhauer, A., Bard, E., and Faure, G.,
2001. A 300 000-yr coral reef record of sea level changes, Mururoa
atoll (Tuamotu archipelago, French Polynesia). Palaeogeography,
Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 175, 325–341.
Chevalier, J.-P., Denizot, M., Mougin, J.-L., Plessis, Y., and Salvat,
B., 1969. Etude géomorphologique et bionomique de l’atoll de
Mururoa (Tuamotu). Cahiers du Pacifique, 13, 9–144.
Church, J. A., White, N. J., and Hunter, J. R., 2006. Sea-level rise at
tropical Pacific and Indian Ocean islands. Global and Planetary
Change, 53, 155–168.
Cloud, P. E., 1952. Preliminary report on geology and marine environments of Onotoa Atoll, Gilbert Islands. Atoll Research
Bulletin, 12, 1–73.
Colin, P. L., 1986. Benthic community distribution in the Enewetak
Atoll lagoon, Marshall Islands. Bulletin of Marine Science, 38,
129–143.
Collen, J. D., and Garton, D. W., 2004. Larger foraminifera and sedimentation around Fongafale Island, Funafuti Atoll, Tuvalu.
Coral Reefs, 23, 445–454.
Connell, J., 2003. Losing ground? Tuvalu, the greenhouse effect
and the garbage can. Asia Pacific Viewpoint, 44, 89–106.
Cotton, C. A., 1948. The present-day status of coral reef theories.
New Zealand Science Review, 6, 111–113.
Daly, R. A., 1934. The Changing World of the Ice Age. New Haven:
Yale University Press, 271 pp.
Darwin, C., 1842. The Structure and Distribution of Coral Reefs.
London: Smith, Elder and Co., 214 pp.
David, T. W. E., and Sweet, G., 1904. The geology of Funafuti.
In The Atoll of Funafuti: Borings into a Coral Reef and the
Results. The Royal Society, London, pp. 61–124.
Davis, W. M., 1928. The coral reef problem. American Geographical Society, Special Publication, 9, 596 pp.
Dawson, E. Y., 1959. Changes in Palmyra Atoll and its vegetation
through the activities of man, 1913–1958. Pacific Naturalist,
1, 1–51.
ATOLLS
67