CoBOP Coral Reefs: Optical Closure of a Coral Reef Submarine Light Field

Mostly because of the extensive field work during the Coastal Benthic Optical Properties Project at Lee Stocking Island in the Exuma Cays, Bahamas, we have surmised that the traditional problems concerning nutrient regulation of primary production in shallow subtropical benthic communities are poorly understood. Comparative measurements at sites throughout the Bahamas and Florida Keys have suggested that the interaction between nutrient replete deep waters that surround these islands and the porous carbonate platforms provide adjunct avenues of nutrient enrichment. The forces that act to drive this system of nutrient supply are hydrostatic pressure, the earth's rotation and geothermal heating. Our major goal has been to develop a descriptive model of these processes with the end member as predictions of kinetic growth in time and space.