Fractal Dimension of a Coral Reef at Ecological Scales
- 1 January 1983
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Inter-Research Science Center in Marine Ecology Progress Series
- Vol. 10 (2) , 169-171
- https://doi.org/10.3354/meps010169
Abstract
Conventional analytical techniques do not cope adequately with multiscale processes. Mandelbrot''s concept of fractal dimension, a novel approach to multiscale phenomena, is applied to the problem of coral reef topography. A fractal dimension D = 1.9-2.0 for a contour on the reef slope is obtained. This contrasts strongly with the well established value of D = 1.2-1.3 for coastlines. In common with the human lung, another living surface with a high D value, the coral reef slope is maximizing its contact with the surrounding medium.This publication has 4 references indexed in Scilit:
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