Figure 4. Accretion rates of fringing-reef and other framework units from Tiarei and Papeete.

Transient accretion occurs in the interval between dated samples and shows the potential of the reef to accrete vertically over a limited time. Green shading in the accretion column shows transient rates calculated for different holes at the same site (dark green shows overlap in transient accretion between holes). The average accretion within each unit is shown by circled values. The reef-crest unit at Papeete, for example, shows transient accretion of up to 49 mm yr⁻¹, but has an average accretion of ~16 mm yr⁻¹ between 65 and 50 m in P7-8. By contrast, the fringing-reef unit shows transient accretion of up to 5 mm yr⁻¹ but averages only ~3.5 mm yr⁻¹ between holes. Ages in italics distinguish data from different holes. Ages in blue are calendar age calibrations of ¹⁴C ages (Methods). Closely spaced holes from site 9 (9b,c and d) are combined to calculate accretion rates.