Origin and Structure of Coral Reefs

Abstract

As with any science, answers to puzzling questions often come from outside a narrowly focused group, and reef science in the 19th century was no exception. By the turn of the century, with geological issues of earth movements, volcanoes and other inner core pressures better understood, and the nature of coral reefs somehow constructed by animals more widely accepted, the focus again turned to the nature of reefs and their formation. Lyell’s theory of 1832 was inspired and then challenged by a young Charles Darwin. After his journey on the Beagle he outlined his theory for the formation of reefs based on his understanding of the elevation and subsidence of land on which reefs were built, and the activity of coral polyps as reef builders, which challenged the more popular earlier theories of Lyell.