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A New Coral Reef Province in the Gulf of Carpentaria, Australia: Colonisation, Growth and Submergence During the Early Holocene  


Authors / CoAuthors

Harris, P.T. | Heap, A.D. | Marshall, J.F. | McCulloch, M.

Abstract

Multibeam sonar mapping, drill cores and underwater video data have confirmed the existence of a previously unknown reef province in the Gulf of Carpentaria, Australia. Seven reefs, comprised of coral limestone that support living corals have been mapped so far and as many as 50 other reefs may exist in the region. U/Th ages show that reef growth commenced shortly after limestone pedestals were submerged by rising sea level around 10.5 kyr BP, making them the oldest reefs known in Australia. Reef growth persisted for ~2.0 kyr but it had ceased at most locations by ~8.0 kyr BP. Measurements of reef growth rates (0.95 to 4 m kyr-1), indicate that the reefs were unable to keep pace with contemporaneous rapid sea level rise (>10 m kyr-1), which is consistent with a 'give up' reef growth history. Core samples from reef platforms demonstrate that Pleistocene limestone is exposed in depths of 27 and 30 m below present mean sea level. These depths represent regionally significant phases of reef growth during a prolonged sea level still stand. We conclude that the reefs are therefore mostly relict features, whose major phase of growth and development relates to an earlier, pre-Holocene sea level stillstand.

Product Type

nonGeographicDataset

eCat Id

65582

Contact for the resource

  Custodian

EGD  

  Owner

Commonwealth of Australia (Geoscience Australia)  

  Custodian

Commonwealth of Australia (Geoscience Australia)  
Cnr Jerrabomberra Ave and Hindmarsh Dr GPO Box 378
Canberra
ACT
2601
Australia

Digital Object Identifier

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.margeo.2008.02.010

Keywords

  • External PublicationScientific Journal Paper
( Theme )
  • carbonate
( Theme )
  • continental shelf
( Theme )
  • palaeogeography
( Theme )
  • geochronology
( Theme )
  • marine
  • AU-NTAU-QLD
Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classification (ANZSRC)
  • Earth Sciences
  • Published_External

Publication Date

2008-01-01T00:00:00

Creation Date

Security Constraints

Australian Government Security ClassificationSystem    

Classification - unclassified

Legal Constraints

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence    

Access - license

Use - license

Status

Purpose

Maintenance Information

unknown

Topic Category

geoscientificInformation

Series Information

251

Lineage

Unknown

Parent Information

Extents

[-17.0, -10.0, 134.0, 142.0]

Reference System

Spatial Resolution

Service Information

Associations

Downloads and Links

Link to Publication  

Source Information

Source data not available.



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