Islands and Coral Reef

Write notes about island and coral reef?

Island-A piece of land surrouned on all sides by water

Islands grouped into two types

1.Continental Islands

-formerly part of mainland and now detached from the land and separated by shallow lagoon or
adeep channel

- separation could be subsistance some part of land or rise in sea level

-formwer connection with neighbouring island traced out by similarity between flora and fauna
on both of the channel

a.Individual Islands:

-Lie just outside of continents and very much associated with characteristic features of mainland

-eg 1.Newfoudland separated from strait of Belle Isle

b.Archipelagoes and Island groups:

-these comprise groups of islands with varying size and shapes

eg the British Isles,the Balearic Islands of Meditteranean sea

c.Festoons andIsland arc:

-the island from an archipelago in the shape of a loop around the edge or the mountain,making
continuation of mountains range

eg the East Indies,the Aleutian Islands,Ryukyu islands and others island arcs of Pacific coasts

2.Oceanic Islands:

-these island are normally small and located in the midst of oceans. useful to stop airplanes.

-no connection with mainlands which may hundreds or thousands miles away.eg galapagos
islands

a.Volcanic Islands:

-most of islands topmost parts of cones of valconoes that rise from the ocean bed.Most of
extinct but some active ones.

eg Mauna loa in hawaii

b.Coral islands

-very much lower and emerge just above water surface,

-these built by corals of various species l

eg Marshall islands,gilbert and Ellice islands of Pacific ocean

Coral Reefs:

-in tropical seas many kinds of coral animals and marine organisms such as coral
polyps,calcarcous algae,shell forming creatures,lime secreting plants live in large colonies

-This tiny creature able to secret calcium carbonate and give rise to peculiar tyoe of marine
landform

-coral polyps is more abdundant and helpsto form coral reef when they die their limy skeletons
are cemented into coralline limestone.

The reef buildibg corals survive best following condition

1.The temperature must not fell below limits.coral will not flourish in cold currents because of
upwilling of cold water from the depths that cools the warm surface water(so no coral reefs in
western coast)

2.The water depths should not exceed 30 fathoms or 180 feets beyond this sunlight is too faint
for photosynthesis to take place

3.the water should be saltish and free from sediments

Types of coral reefs:

1.Fringing reef:

-It separated from mainland by shallow lagoons.The outer edge grows more rapidly because of
splashing waves that continuously renew the supply of food.

2.Barrier reef:

-Separated from the coast by a much wider and deeper channel or lagoon.The reef is partially
submerged land lies above water level and sand can accumulate on it.

-barrier reefs have narrow gap,several places to allow water from the enclosed lagoon to return
to open ocean.It is useful for shipping and provide the entrances for ships

eg;Great barrier reef

3.Atoll
-similar to barrier reef except that they are in circular in shape,enclosing shallow lagoon without
land in centre.The enclosing ring is usually broken to allow free flow of water.palm tree like
coconut may grow.the calm water useful for fishing

Development of Major Reef tyoes:

Proposed by Charlas Darwin

1.All coral reefs begam as fringing reefs around an island or the topmost portions of extinct
volcanoes.

2.due to downwrapping of earths crust,the island gradually subsided.The coral continue to grow
upwards,the growth was more vigorous at the outward edge than the landward edge,so
encircling reef widened.It then formed barrier reef

3.After land completely submerged only the outer rims of the reefs were seen forming an atoll