Yu. D. Shuisky
Odessa I. I. Mechnikov National University, Odessa, Ukraine
e-mail: physgeo_onu@ukr.net
Abstract
The paper presents the results of research of the role of macrophytes in sediment supply to the coastal zone of the World Ocean, an important source of sediment that has been overlooked by coastal researchers. This source is red and brown algae that bring coarse debris from the submarine slope to the sea coast. These plants attach to hard surfaces on the seabed slope, to separate stones, boulders, rock benches etc. The algal thallus reacts to the influence of wave currents, the speed of which can be over 2 m/s. Studies have shown that algae act as a kind of lever by which rock debris is torn away from the underwater slope. At direct wave speeds, the debris moves to the shore and is thrown onto the beach by the tidal current. Since red and brown algae grow in the coastal shallow waters of all geographical zones in all oceans, this mechanism of sediment supply to the shore must be widespread. But in fact, it appears that this mechanism and physical and geographical conditions under which it operates have not been described but only mentioned in a few literature sources. Our research showed that in some areas this source of sediment can supply up to half of all the beach sediments, e. g. those along the Frisian, Aleutian, Kuril Islands, islands of Saaremaa, Newfoundland, Sakhalin, Britannia and some others.
Keywords
World Ocean, coastal zone, brown algae, rhizoid, underwater slope, sediments
For citation
Shuisky, Yu.D., 2021. The Role of Macrophytes in Sediment Transport in the Coastal Zone of the World Ocean. Ecological Safety of Coastal and Shelf Zones of Sea, (4), pp. 27–38. doi:10.22449/2413-5577-2021-4-27-38 (in Russian).
DOI
10.22449/2413-5577-2021-4-27-38
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