Marine Biology Turtles Sand Beach Formation

Rainbow Beach

72 different colors that can be spotted thanks to nearby multicolored sand cliffs

deposition

A Barrier spit is this type of landform that develops when transported sand or gravel in a barrier beach or island is laid down in long ridges that are attached at one end to the mainland and partially cross the mouth of a bay.

scutes

A bony external plate or scale, as on the shell of a turtle or skin; individual squares on a turtles back

abrasion

A mechanical weathering process in which rocks are grinded away into smaller rocks without a change to the chemical composition of the rock.

scarp

A nearly vertical seaward facing sandy cliff within a beach profile, often associated with eroding coastlines that can reach heights of 6-10ft.

headland

A part of the shore that sticks out into the ocean

tombolo

A ridge of sand that connects an island to the mainland or to another island

Inorganic mineral sands

Abiogenic sands

wave-built terrace

An extension to a wave-cut terrace formed by erosional material deposited offshore

Bay barrier

An extensive barrier spit of sand or gravel that encloses a bay, cutting it off completely from the ocean and forming a lagoon; produced by littoral drift and wave action; sometimes referred to as a baymouth bar.

younger

Are rough, irregular particles more likely to be younger or older than rounded, smooth ones?

Man-made substances

Beach glas or plastics may be broken down and rounded by waves and become part of the abiogenic sand

Bubbles

Biogenetic material does this when it comes in contact with acids because it contains Calcium carbonate (CaCO3).

plastron

Bottom of turtle - The ventral (bottom) part of a turtle's shell

Pink Sandy Beaches

Broken coral pieces, shells, and calcium carbonate minerals (Bahamas; shells of creature that live in coral reefs that surround the beach).

Bubbles when it comes in contact with an acid

Calcium carbonate (CaCO3) - this is how you can tell is sand is biogenic or abiogenic. Even acetic acid (vinegar) will cause this reaction.

black sandy beaches

Composed of volcanic minerals and lava fragments

small waves

Do large or small waves deposit sand?

Large

Do large or small waves remove sand?

Fine Sand

Does coarse sand or fine sand have a greater abundance of orgaanism?

Examples of sea stumps

Dun Briste, CO Mayo (50 m tall)

Hydraulic action (erosion)

Force of waves breaking against cliff causing it to break from the air compressed in cracks

iron rich material - compounds turn red when they hit oxygen

How are red beaches made of?

1/16 mm to 2 mm

How big are sand grains?

Orange Sandy Shores

In Italy, come from a combination of orange limestone, crushed shells, and volcanic deposits.

constructive

Is deposition a constructive or destructive process?

Destructive

Is erosion a constructive or destructive process?

Porosity

Particle size of sediment influences the _______ of sand and the ability of animals to burrow

Deposition

Process in which sediment is laid down in new locations. Material is deposited, or built up, on a landorm

gravel, sand, silts, clay

Put these in order from largest to smallest sand clay gravel silts

Weathering

Rough or sharp edged particles become rounded and polished through what process?

Purple Sandy Shores

Sand is usually primarily composed of quartz, but at this beach you will find areas of concentrated garnet. Pfeiffer beach in California

meiofauna

Small organisms that live in the spaces between sediment particles

False - Plants and humans can interfer with the rate of erosion.

T or F - Plants never slow the rate of erosion.

False - pure, distinctly shaped crystals are rarely found

T or F - Pure, distinctly shaped crystals are often found.

True

T or F - Smaller particles form on flatter beaches

True

T or F - Wind can transport particles over great distances, some even halfway across a continent or an entire ocean basin.

True

T or F - erosion is the removal of weathered material from location to another.

False - Sand grains can be biotic or abiotic

T or F - sand grains are only biotic.

True - abrasion during transport rounds particles

T or F - the rounder the sediment, the longer the transport

True

T or F - the size of sand is informative about the slope of the beach.

True - the farther the transport the better the sorting

T or F - the sorting of sediments can indicate how far the rock has been transported

False - the dryer the region, the stronger the erosional force

T or F - wind erodes more quickly in humid regions

True

T or F- Black sand beaches are usually close to volcanoes.

weather and erosion

The breakdown of rocks into smaller pieces; over thousands of years this will form sand.

weathering

The chemical and physical processes that break down rock at Earth's surface. This does NOT involve transporting.

Clay, silt, sand, and gravel (cobbles and boulders).

The different grain sizes of the fragments of soil from finest to coarsest.

saltation

The movement of finer paricles by short jumps and bounces that is caused by wind or water

Erosion

The process by which wind, water, ice, or gravity wear away and transports soil and sediment from one location to another. This is the opposite of deposition.

wave-cut platform

The smooth, level terrace sometimes found on erosional coasts that marks the submerged limit of rapid marine erosion.

sphericity

The state or condition of being a sphere.

the larger the particles

The steeper the beaches.

abiogenic and biogenic

The two classifications of sand.

Sea Stumps

These form when a sea stack is undercut by erosion and collapses. Most can only be seen at low tide.

Red Sandy Shores

This sand is rich in iron, which has eroded from the land, it is why the beach's sand is such a deep red. Iron-rich black and red lava rocks led to this colorful

carapace

Top of the turtle - shell - hard outer covering or case of turtles

seacave

Wave carved opening at base of cliff

Sea Cave Sea Arch Sea Stack Sea Stump

Waves cut cracks and form large holes which become _________. Over time, and more erosion, they become _____ ______. Over time, the arch cannot be supported, so it will colapse and form a _________. The stack is undercut by erosion at it's base and may collapse to form a ______.

Olivine - Hawaiian

What are green beaches made of?

Water, wind, glaciers, or gravity

What are some agents of deposition?

water, wind, glaciers, ice, and gravity

What are some weathering agents?

weather, climate, shape of the land and type of rock

What are the factors that effect the rate of erosion?

Creep, saltation, suspension

What are the three types of wind erosion?

size and shape

What are the two fundamental properties of sediment?

Parrotfish poop

What are white sand beaches made of?

silica (silicon dioxide Si2-quarts) minerals like mica feldspar

What do sandy shores consist of?

Pink Sand

Which sand is formed from a mixture of white sand and tiny fragments of red coral?

Black sand

Which sand is from iron, titanium, and other volcanic materials; often basalt deposits?

Green Sandy Shores

Which sandy shores come from the olivine crystals which erode out of basalt lava flows.

greater water retention and more suitable sediment for burrowing.

Why do fine sand beaches have a great abundance of organisms?

The waves can send particles higher and then they do not receive as much interaction with the wind and water as flatter beaches do.

Why do steeper beaches have larger particles?

dune

a feature that may form when there is a strong enough wind for sediment transport, a sufficient supply of sand, and obstacle-like vegetation, which allows the blown sand to be trapped and accumulate over time.

blowhole

a hole in the roof of a coastal cave, produced by wave erosion, through which compressed air and water are forced as waves break into the cave

wavecut platform

a narrow, flat area at the base of a sea cliff. Cliff collapses due to a wave cut notch, creating a platform

lagoon

a stretch of salt water separated from the sea by a low sandbank or coral reef.

source rock

abiogenic sand comes from a mother or ____ ____.

sediment

all particles, including boulders, gravel, sand and mud.

Beach

an area of sand sloping down to the water of a sea or lake

Barrier spit

an exposed sandbar that is connected to the shoreline

natural bridge

arch of rock formed by groundwater erosion

physical weathering

breaks rocks into smaller pieces without changing its composition.

CaCO3

calcium carbonate - The substance is the primary component of most biogenic sands causing them to react with acid.

sphericity - texture

can reveal the age of particles

chemical weathering

chages the mineral composition of the rock.

tidal inlet

channel or break in a bay barrier or spit that connects an estuary to the open ocean

characteristics of sand

colors, textures, size of sand, grains, and material origins

Biogenic sands

composed of skeletal remains from living things. ex: coral, mollusk shells, worm tubes, sea shells, sponge spicules, sea urchin spines, exoskeletons, and algae

Quartz

found in many rocks including granite and cert and is the main constituent of most sand. Most are clear or white in color.

sea stacks

offshore columns of resistant rock that were once connected to the mainland

bay

part of a large body of water that extends into a shoreline, generally smaller than a gulf

white-sand beaches

poop of parrotfish

waves and tides

provide the constant action that assists in breaking down rocks to form sand.

abiogenic

sand made from eroded pieces of rocks called mother or source rocks; not produced by the action of living organisms.

biogenic

sand made of the skeletal remains of plants and animals; resulting from living things

Scales on turtle shell

scotes???

suspension

the movement of very, tiny-sized particles

sorting of sediment

the separating of items into groups according to one or more properties

sphericity

the shape of granular material; intitially defined by a surface ratio that requires 3D grain surface measurement.

creep

the slower movement of heavy particles

Sea turtles typically nest only on beaches

where they were hatched