The provenance of beach sediments on Rhodes, southeastern Greece, indicated by sediment texture, composition and roundness

Analysis of the surface microtextures and morphologies of beach quartz grains in Japan and implications for provenance research

“…V-1 (Tokushima) was also influenced by river supply (Yoshino River) and showed the lowest roundness among all samples. Pyökäri (1997) also stated that roundness of sediment grains at beach discharged from river was poor. Another reason for V-1 showing angular outline was the parent rock.…”

Assessment of the Coastal Vulnerability to the Ongoing Sea Level Rise for the Exquisite Rhodes Island (SE Aegean Sea, Greece)

“…Previous studies [43,44,110] and our extensive field surveys spanning 2007-2013 have identified that fluvial-alluvial environments as well as sandy (and gravelly) beaches under erosion constitute more than 60% of the Rhodes coastal zone (Figure 6a). The beaches protected by beach rocks are limited, because the majority of these hard formations are uplifted [43,111] and, thus, they cannot substantially hinder coastal erosion. Rocky coasts of alpine substrate are mainly located in the western part (Kritinia-Monolithos area) and southern tip (Prasonisi) of the island, while post-alpine substrate occurs…”

“…However, the resolution of the island's coastal zone was increased to a cell size of 50 × 50 m, using the results of the extensive fieldwork performed for the aims of the Interreg project COAST (2007-2013) [77]. Additional information about the texture of recent sediments occurring in several beaches of Rhodes was derived from the studies of Pyokari [43], Verikiou-Papaspiridakou et al [44] and Anagnostou et al [45].…”

“…It is mostly directed from NW to SE, while V-shaped valleys exhibiting a W-E orientation have developed throughout the island due to the combined action of erosive and tectonic processes. Various beach morphologies occur at the estuaries of the hydrographic network, mainly including sand, pebbles and limited mud fractions, and governed by torrential and marine depositional processes, while sand dunes and beach rocks are distinct features of several coastal areas [27,39,43,44]. The smooth slope and remarkable length (151 km) of the sandy beaches, which cover 60% of the total island's coastal zone, together with the outstanding environmental conditions, have made Rhodes one of the most visited tourist hotspots in the Aegean Sea [45].…”

Abiotic and Biotic Links Work Two Ways: Effects on the Deposit at the Cliff Foot Induced by Mechanical Action of Date Mussel Harvesting (Lithophaga lithophaga)

“…From this perspective, in presence of areas impacted by DMH, that in some cases affects entire coastline sectors wide hundreds of km (Fanelli et al 1994 report of a DMH impact along the Apulian coastline in 105 km above 159 km of inspected rocky coast), paleo-beach pebble deposits can be obliterated, loosing one of their peculiar characteristics (high roundness of clasts) and therefore leading to misunderstandings in their interpretation. For this reason we suggest that future studies using, among other indexes, roundness to discuss past environmental conditions or processes in submerged coastal environments (Sames 1966;Howard 1992;Pyökäri 1997) should consider the possible presence of DMH and the subsequent possible bias. On the other hand, in case of evidence of past or still active (even if illegal) DMH in coastal areas, we should recommend the use, among others, of the roundness index in order to evaluate the presence of human-produced sediments.…”