GES 3810 - The Reef Environment and Geology of Modern Carbonate Systems (3)

When Offered: On Demand
This field-based course provides students with an opportunity to study a modern reef environment in an active carbonate depositional system to be used as an analogue for ancient reefs. Locations for the course may include Bermuda, the Florida Keys, and the Bahamas. Course will emphasize species-level identification of major coral and carbonate-producing organisms, processes involved in the construction and destruction of reef systems, biologic and geologic processes that cause alteration of carbonate rocks, and reef responses to environmental changes with sea level rise and fall. Students will use a fieldbook to record field- and lab-based identifications of carbonate rocks and sediment grains, record and describe sample collection techniques, and practice observational skills in the field by making sketches of geologic relationships exposed in outcrop. Course will include pre-trip meetings, which may include lectures, lab-based specimen identifications, and a field-trip to ancient reef systems in nearby exposures. Students must be able to swim in the open ocean, use snorkeling gear (e.g., mask, snorkel, fins), and be comfortable accessing reefs by beach or boat.
Prerequisites: GES 2250 and permission of the instructor.