The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park: Dimensions and Regional Patterns

Hopley, David; Parnell, Kevin E.; Isdale, Peter

doi:10.1111/j.1467-8470.1989.tb00591.x

Cited by 45 publications

(33 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…This lagoon leads to high porosities of generally more than 0.8. The trend of porosity is similar to the much lower resolution (1°lati-tude) estimate of the area of shelf to reef calculated by Hopley et al (1989; Fig. 7a), but here calculated at much higher resolution.…”

Section: Porosity Of the Reef Matrixsupporting

confidence: 62%

“…1). The average area of individual reefs is 6.9 km 2 , and the total reef area is 20,055 km 2 (Hopley et al 1989). In the north, reefs are predominantly two-dimensional (i.e., very narrow in the cross-shore direction) and create almost a complete barrier to incident waves (Young 1989).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The porosity index indirectly reflects the geomorphology of individual reefs. For example, according to Hopley et al (1989), north of 16°S, planar reefs are common and associated with extensive reef flats and a lack of lagoons, leading to lower porosity in the north. Crescentic reefs dominate the central GBR between 14 and 22°S, with an open back reef area and lagoons, reflected in the increasing porosity index in the area.…”

Section: Porosity Of the Reef Matrixmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The GBR is an offshore reef matrix that extends 2,300 km alongshore (Hopley et al 2007), with more than 2,900 individual reefs (Hopley et al 1989; Fig. 1).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

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The large-scale influence of the Great Barrier Reef matrix on wave attenuation

et al. 2014

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Offshore reef systems consist of individual reefs, with spaces in between, which together constitute the reef matrix. This is the first comprehensive, large-scale study, of the influence of an offshore reef system on wave climate and wave transmission. The focus was on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR), Australia, utilizing a 16-yr record of wave height from seven satellite altimeters. Within the GBR matrix, the wave climate is not strongly dependent on reef matrix submergence. This suggests that after initial wave breaking at the seaward edge of the reef matrix, wave energy that penetrates the matrix has little depth modulation. There is no clear evidence to suggest that as reef matrix porosity (ratio of spaces between individual reefs to reef area) decreases, wave attenuation increases. This is because individual reefs cast a wave shadow much larger than the reef itself; thus, a matrix of isolated reefs is remarkably effective at attenuating wave energy. This weak dependence of transmitted wave energy on depth of reef submergence, and reef matrix porosity, is also evident in the lee of the GBR matrix. Here, wave conditions appear to be dependent largely on local wind speed, rather than wave conditions either seaward, or within the reef matrix. This is because the GBR matrix is a very effective wave absorber, irrespective of water depth and reef matrix porosity.

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Section: Porosity Of the Reef Matrixsupporting

confidence: 62%

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Porosity Of the Reef Matrixmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The GBR is an offshore reef matrix that extends 2,300 km alongshore (Hopley et al 2007), with more than 2,900 individual reefs (Hopley et al 1989; Fig. 1).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

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The large-scale influence of the Great Barrier Reef matrix on wave attenuation

et al. 2014

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“…The Whitsunday Islands comprise > 40 closely spaced continental islands and >100 fringing reefs (Hopley et al 1989, Heap et al 1999) that are situated in the central wet tropic region of the GBR from 20°00' to 20°30' S and 148°45' to 149°15' E. A persistent environmental gradient occurs across the Whitsunday Islands, in which increased turbidity (leading to reduced light availability for benthic primary producers), increased inorganic nutrient levels and chl a content are positively correlated with proximity to terrestrial discharge (van Woesik et al 1999, Rohde et al 2006, Cooper et al 2007). This study focuses on 5 fringing back reefs in the Whitsunday Island group (Fig.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Inhibited growth in the photosymbiont-bearing foraminifer Marginopora vertebralis from the nearshore Great Barrier Reef, Australia

Reymond

Uthicke²,

Pandolfi³

2011

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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A meta‐analysis of reef island response to environmental change on the Great Barrier Reef

Hamylton

Puotinen

2015

Earth Surf Processes Landf

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Reef islands on the Great Barrier Reef are influenced by a range of environmental factors. A meta-analysis of 103 islands is presented to express variation in island size (area and volume) as a function of latitudinal and cross shelf gradients in regional oceanographic factors (exposure to incident waves, tidal range and tropical cyclone frequency) and local physical factors (position on the shelf, area, length and depth of supporting reef platform, vegetative cover). Models performed well for unvegetated sandcays (R 2 = 0.89), vegetated sandcays (R 2 = 0·72) and low wooded islands (R 2 = 0.78), with a moderate level of variation explained when all islands were simultaneously regressed (R 2 = 0.58). Future island dynamics were simulated for anticipated changes in cyclone regime, wave activity and sea level. For 38 islands mapped on the 1973 Royal Society and Universities of Queensland Expedition to the Northern Great Barrier Reef, change over the same 22 year period was determined and the relative magnitude of observed and modelled changes was compared and found to be consistent through rank correlation analysis (Γ = 0.84 for unvegetated sandcays, Γ = 0.81 for vegetated sandcays). Simulations of island area or volume change from 2000 to 2100 indicated that under a 30% decrease in tropical cyclone activity, unvegetated sandcays continue to accrete at a lower rate, whereas all island types erode under a 38% increase in tropical cyclone activity. Vegetated sandcays initially accrete at higher levels of cyclone activity, entering an erosive state with a 60% increase in activity. Low wooded islands are unresponsive to environmental changes modelled. A sensitivity analysis of vegetated and unvegetated sandcays indicated that the presence of vegetation increases the tropical cyclone activity threshold at which islands begin to erode. Greatest sedimentary losses occur within the central band of high cyclone activity between Cooktown and Mackay.

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The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park: Dimensions and Regional Patterns

Cited by 45 publications

References 15 publications

The large-scale influence of the Great Barrier Reef matrix on wave attenuation

The large-scale influence of the Great Barrier Reef matrix on wave attenuation

Inhibited growth in the photosymbiont-bearing foraminifer Marginopora vertebralis from the nearshore Great Barrier Reef, Australia

A meta‐analysis of reef island response to environmental change on the Great Barrier Reef

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