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International Journal of Marine Science 2014, Vol.4, No.39: 1-4
http://ijms.biopublisher.ca
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Figure 2 Reef profile and distribution of abundant macrobenthos on unstructured reefs in Baitylong archipelago.
Figure 3 The appearance of bioherm, depth 6 m
Zone of Coral Dominants
(II). This is a zone of
development of monospecific settlements of
scleractinian appearing as alternating spots of
proliferating branched, mass, and other colonies. The
two species,
S. pistillata
and
Acropora microphthalma
,
form the settlements. Algae
Pocokiela variegata
and
the calcareous
.
Corallinacea are the most distributed
among the macrophytes. The degree of covering by
corals is 20-30% on the whole, and up to 80% in spots
of settlements. The zone does not exceed 50 m in
width, and depth is 2-5 m. This zone is comparable
with the outer part of a fringed reef (Pichon, 1977;
Bouchon, 1981; Latypov, 2013).
Zone of Bioherms
(III). A characteristic feature of this
zone is the development of polyspecific settlements,
chiefly massive and massive crusted forms. Faviidae,
among which very robust colonies of
Leptoria phrygia
and
Porites lutea
are separated, predominate. The
zone is distinguished by a high specific diversity of
scleractinian and alcyonarian. The degree of covering
by corals is 30-40%. It is up to 100 m wide and 5-7 m
deep and is comparable to the zone of crests and
canals of the upper part of the outer slope of
Indo-Pacific reefs.
Alcyonaria - Algae Zone
(IV). A zone of spotted
polyspecific settlements of soft corals among which
different colonies of scleractinian and small sections
of the algae
Padina camersoni
are distributed.
Depletion and change in the taxonomic composition of
scleractinian are characteristic for this zone. There are
nearly no
Acropora
here, but
Turbinaria, Goniopora
,
and
Alveopora
are common. The degree of covering
dose not exceeds several percent’s. This zone is
comparable to the lower part of the reef slope.
2.2 Reefs of Baitylong archipelago
Different islands at Baitylong archipelago, their sides
and bays have various morphological profiles and
patterns of reef zonation. Small islands and their bays
have structureless coral reefs built by settlement of
individuals or groups of colonies, rarely by bioherms
(Figure 3, 4). Reef deposits form only a veneer; they
do not form the reef framework and match the natural
profile of the bottom which consists, for the most part,
of large pieces of rock rubble and, rarely, of dead coral
fragments. The morphology of such reefs is affected
strongly by the underlying topography and only a reef
slope is distinct.