The lagoon at Caroline/Millennium atoll, Republic of Kiribati: natural history of a nearly pristine ecosystem.

ABSTRACT: A series of surveys were carried out to characterize the physical and biological parameters of the Millennium Atoll lagoon during a research expedition in April of 2009. Millennium is a remote coral atoll in the Central Pacific belonging to the Republic of Kiribati, and a member of the Southern Line Islands chain. The atoll is among the few remaining coral reef ecosystems that are relatively pristine. The lagoon is highly enclosed, and was characterized by reticulate patch and line reefs throughout the center of the lagoon as well as perimeter reefs around the rim of the atoll. The depth reached a maximum of 33.3 m in the central region of the lagoon, and averaged between 8.8 and 13.7 m in most of the pools. The deepest areas were found to harbor large platforms of Favia matthaii, which pr

SUBMITTER: Barott KL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2880600 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature