OCEANS, SEAS AND THEIR COASTS

By Mr. Ogoti R.M @2023

Definition of Oceans- 2019/2020

- An ocean is a large/extensive body of saline water occupying a basin between
continents.
Examples of oceans
 Pacific ocean
 Atlantic ocean
 Indian ocean
 Arctic ocean
- Oceanography is the study of a large/extensive body of saline water occupying a
basin between continents.

Definition of Seas- 2020

- A sea is a large body of saline water along the continental margins.

- A sea is a large inland saline water body without a connection with the ocean.
- A sea is a large body of saline water joined to or separated from the ocean by straits (a
submerged rock).

Types of seas
a) Inland/landlocked seas.
- Have no connection with the oceans.
- Examples;
 Caspian sea
 Aral sea
 Dead sea & sea of Galilee
 Salton sea

b) Seas connected to oceans through straits.

- Examples;
 Mediterranean sea
 Red sea
 Black sea
 Baltic sea

c) Marginal seas (part of the ocean)

- Seas on the margin of Atlantic Ocean are North Sea, Norwegian Sea, Irish Sea,
Labrador Sea and Carribean Sea.
- Seas on the margin of Indian Ocean are Arabian Sea and Andaman Sea.
- Seas on the margin of Pacific Ocean are The Sea of Okhotsk, The Sea of Japan, The
Yellow Sea, The East China Sea, the South China Sea, Timor Sea, Tasman Sea and
Coral Sea.
- Seas on the margin of the Arctic Ocean are The Beaufort Sea and The East
Siberian.

Similarities between Oceans and Seas.

 Both contain saline waters.
 Their waters are in constant motion due to waves.

1
 Differences between Oceans and Seas.
 Oceans are affected by tides while marginal seas are the only seas affected by tides.
 Oceans have strong ocean currents while Ocean currents only affect the marginal seas
like Caribbean Sea the rest have well developed land and sea breezes.
 Oceans have strong winds which cause hurricanes/tornadoes whereas Seas have
strong winds cause whirl winds/waterspouts which are less violent.
 Sunlit eastern coasts of oceans lead to coral formations whereas seas have no coral
formation.
 Oceans surround continents or vast lands while seas are surrounded by vast
lands/continents other than marginal seas.

The Nature of Ocean Water

- It has five major aspects namely;
 Salt water
 The temperature of ocean water
 The ocean life
 The ocean topography
 Ocean pollution

A. Salt water
- Ocean water contains different salts like calcium chloride, magnesium chloride,
sodium compounds and potassium compounds.
- Sources of mineral salts in oceans are;
 Rivers draining in oceans bring in dissolved minerals.
 Most salts were present during the formation of oceans.
 Ocean bedrocks contain salts which dissolve in ocean water.
 During eruption, volcanic materials released bring in a lot of salts.
- Factors influencing salinity of ocean water;
 Latitude- ocean salinity is higher near the tropics due to high temperature
causing evaporation. It decreases towards the equator because of heavy
rainfall and less evaporation due to high humidity and more cloud cover.
 Depth- The surface water is generally more saline than the bottom water.
 The position of the inland water- Seas located in regions of high temperatures,
with little rainfall and few rivers emptying into them tend to have high salinity
and vice versa.
- Causes of variation in the amount of salt in ocean water;- kcse 2019
 High temperature in ocean water results to high evaporation which leaves
behind higher salt concentration.
 Fresh water added to the oceans through rainfall and melt ice reduces
concentration of salts in the ocean.
 Upwelling of water and ocean currents leads to mixing of ocean water causing
variation in concentration of salts.

NOTE: Isohalines are lines drawn on a map to show places with the same salinity in the
ocean.

2
 B. The temperature of ocean water
- It is not uniform. It varies from the equator poleward as well as from the surface to the
bottom.
- It decreases with increase in depth except in the poles where there is temperature
inversion due to the cold water caused by melting polar ice.
- An instrument called bathythermograph measures temperature with depth.

Factors influencing the ocean water temperature.

 Latitude of the ocean.
 Ocean current.
 The depth of the ocean.
 Salinity of the ocean water.
 Air masses.
 Upwelling of water.
 Enclosed and open seas.

C. The ocean life

- The ocean water by nature forms a habitat of organisms. These include the plankton,
nekton and benthos.
- Planktons are fish feeds that occupy the surface of the oceans.
- The ocean planktons are called phytoplankton e.g. algae like diatoms.
- The animal planktons are called zooplankton e.g. eggs and immature fish, lobsters,
jellyfish and crabs.
- Nekton include all swimming forms of fish from tiny herrings to huge whales.
- Benthos are ocean creatures living only at the bottom of sea water e.g. corals, snails,
starfish, slams and sea anemones.

D. Ocean water pollution

- Pollution introduces substances into ocean water that produce a harmful change.
- Ocean water is polluted through;
 Industrial waste disposal.
 Solid human wastes disposal.
 Oil spillage from tankers/ships.
 Silt and sediments brought from the hinterland.
 Agricultural pesticides and herbicides from the hinterland.

E. The ocean topography

- Ocean topography is composed of several features like;
a) Continental shelf- Relatively flat part of the continent covered by ocean water.
b) Continental slope- Steeply dipping surface between continental shelf and the ocean
basin proper.
c) Abbysal plain- Almost level area of the ocean where sediments are deposited.
d) Mid ocean ridges- Range of hills which are submerged formed by volcanic and
seismic activities. Those formed through faulting in the seabed are called sea scarp.
e) Sea Islands- pieces of land surrounded by water.
i) Continental islands- Ones rising from continental shelf.
ii) Oceanic islands-Ones rising from the sea floor.
iii) Coral islands-Ones made of coral.
f) Deep sea trenches - narrow steep sided submarine valleys on the ocean floor.
g) Guyots- submerged atolls forming an underwater mountain.

3
h) Sea mount- a volcano which doesn’t rise above the sea floor.

Water movement in oceans.

- Ocean water is in constant motion either on the surface (horizontal movement) or
deep in the ocean (vertical movement).
- The main cause of these movements are;
 The wind
 Earthquakes
 Submarine volcanic eruption

Types of water movement in oceans.

1. Vertical Movement
- It is the rising of water from the ocean bottom to replace the sinking water from the
ocean surface.
Causes of vertical movement of ocean water-2019
 The difference in density of ocean water.
 The convergence of different ocean currents.

How vertical movement of ocean water occur

 Cold polar water sinking before moving horizontally towards equator.
 Ocean currents converge.
 When ocean water sinks at lower depths after ocean currents converge.
 When ocean water rises to the surface in a process called upwelling.

Significance of vertical movement of ocean water

 Minerals contents brought to the surface water carry a lot of nutrients for
sea animals.
 The region of upwelling water form major fishing grounds like coast of
Namibia.

2. Horizontal Movements
- These are movements of water across the oceans.
- They include;
 Ocean currents
 Tides
 Waves

4
 a) Ocean Currents
- An ocean current is a large mass of ocean water flowing in certain direction with
uniform temperature through a slower moving or still water with different
temperature.

Causes of ocean currents-2011

a) Winds blowing over the ocean causing a mass of surface ocean water to move in its
direction forming drift currents.
b) Rotation of the earth by causing deflection of ocean currents.
c) Shape of the coastal land mass by influencing current direction and causing it to
flow following the coastal outline.
d) Differences in ocean water temperature by causing cold polar water which is dense
due to low temp moves towards the equator passing on the ocean floor and warm
water of the tropics to move towards the poles passing on the surface.
e) Difference in ocean water density/salinity.

Characteristics of major ocean currents.

a) Generally, the ocean currents flowing from the equator/low latitudes towards the
poles are warmer hence called warm ocean currents.
b) Ocean currents flowing from the poles/high latitudes towards the equator are cooler
hence called cold ocean currents.
c) Ocean currents flowing in the northern hemisphere generally move clockwise while
those in southern hemisphere move anticlockwise.
d) Warm ocean currents tend to be on the eastern coasts of continents while cold ocean
currents on the western side.
e) Convergence of ocean currents tend to be on the eastern coasts while divergence on
the western coasts.
f) Ocean currents are less developed in the northern part of indian ocean since monsoon
winds interferes with the smooth flow.
g) Western coasts experience upwelling of water from depths.
h) Counter-equatorial current separates northern and southern equatorial currents due to
trade winds within the equator.

5
 KEY
A- Warm Mozambique/Agulhas current
B- Cold Benguela ocean current
C- Warm Guinea ocean current
D- Cold canary ocean current
E- Warm Brazilian ocean current
F- Cold Peruvian ocean current
G- Cold California ocean current
H- Warm Alaskan ocean current
I- Cold Labrador ocean current
J- Cold oya siwo ocean current
K- Warm kuro siwo ocean current
L- Cold west Australian ocean current
M- Warm east Australian ocean current
N- Warm gulf stream
O- Cold north Atlantic drift
P- Cold Greenland ocean current

Effects of warm ocean currents on the adjacent coastland- 2006/2016

 It warms up the adjacent land.
 It increases humidity of the adjacent land.
 It may lead to rainfall on the adjacent land.

Kcse 2011- Name three ocean currents along the western coast of Africa (3mks)
 Benguela
 Guinea
 Canary

b) Tides-2011
- Tides are periodic rise and fall in the level of ocean/sea due to gravitational attraction of
the sun and the moon.
- Tides are caused by;
i. The influence of the moon and sun.
- They exert gravitational pull on the earth and its water bodies resulting in the bulging
of water causing tides.
ii. Rotation of the Earth
- It brings any point on the earth’s water surface under the influence of two high and two
low tides during the lunar day.
- A lunar day is time taken by the earth to complete one rotation with respect to the moon
(24 hrs 52 min)
- Lunar month is time taken by the moon to complete one revolution around the earth
(27.3 days)
- The moon is always ahead of the earth by 52 minutes due to its revolution e.g. if Nairobi
is opposite the moon at 6pm the following day the high tide will be at 6.52pm.
- Tidal range is the difference between the highest level reached by high tide and lowest
level reached by low tide.

6
- High tide occurs when the level of ocean water moves towards the shore, covering some
features like beaches.
- Low tide occurs when the level of ocean water moves far from the shore towards the
ocean exposing features like wave-cut platforms.
- Semi-diurnal tide refers two high and two low tides that attains the same magnitude/ the
high tides reach the same height and the low tides reach the same level.
- Mixed tides refers to two high and two low tides with a difference in amplitude/ the high
tides may be constant while the low tides do not drop to the same level and vice versa.
- Diurnal tides refers to only one high and one low tides occurring during a lunar day.

Types of tides-2019
- Caused by relative positions of the moon and the sun from the earth.
- Sometimes the moon and the earth are nearer or farther from each other due to their
elliptical orbits.
- Types of tides include;
a) Perigean tides
b) Apogean tides
c) Spring tides
d) Neap tides

a) Perigean Tides
- Occurs when the moon is nearest to the earth (perigee position) causing pulling force
to be greatest producing high tides higher than normal and so is the tidal range.

b) Apogean Tides
- Occur when moon is farthest from the earth (apogee position) causing pulling force to be
weakest producing high tides lower than normal and so is the tidal range.

c) Spring Tides
- Occurs when the sun, moon and the earth are in a straight line (syzygy position) and
pulling in the same plane causing pulling force to be greatest producing highest high tides
and lowest low tides.

7
 d) Neap Tides
- Occurs when the sun, moon and earth form a right angle(quadrature position) and pulling
water to themselves producing high tides being lower than normal and low tides not as
low as expected.

c) Waves
- A wave is the oscillation of water particles.
- It is caused by the friction of the wind upon the surface of water.

Parts of a wave

- The top of the wave is called a crest while the bottom of the wave is called a trough.
- The distance between two successive crests on a wave is called wavelength or length of
a wave.
- The difference in height between crest and trough is called height of a wave.
- The distance of open water over which the wind blows is called a fetch.

8
 Formation of waves.
- Air lies over the sea in layers.
- The surface of the sea exerts a frictional drag on the bottom layer of wind.
- The frictional drag is transmitted into layers above moving at different speeds.
- The air tumbles forward in a circular motion causing the water surface to take the
form of a wave.

Factors determining the size of the wave.

 Strength of the wind.
 Regularity of the wind.
 Distance of open water across which the wind blows.

Breaking of the waves.

- The depth of water decreases near the shore.
- The circular motion below the surface is discontinued as water touches the bottom.
- The height of the wave increases but the length reduces.
- The front of the wave does not have enough water. It steepens, becomes hollow and
the crest plunges forward and the water breaks.

- The forward movement of water after a wave has broken is called a swash/send.
- The return flow of water down the beach to the sea after a wave has broken is called a
backwash-2008
- The water current flowing near the bottom back into the waterbody is called
undertow.

Types of waves
a) Constructive Waves
- Formed when swash is more powerful than back wash.
- They are weak and infrequent in an area.
- They deposit materials at the shore forming features like beaches.
- They are common on the shallow gently sloping coasts where the waves break far from
the shore.
- They break at a rate of ten times or less per minute.

b) Destructive Waves
- Formed when backwash is more powerful than swash.
- They are strong and more frequent in an area.
- They erode materials like pebbles, sands at the shore.
- They are common on the steeply sloping coasts.
- They break at a rate of ten or more times per minute.

9
 The work of a wave.
- It involves- Erosion
-Transportation
-Deposition

1. Wave Erosion
Processes of Wave Erosion-2005/2008/2019
a) Abrasion/Corrasion
- Rock fragments carried by waves are used as a tool to grind against the cliff face as the
waves break. Rock fragments carried by the backwash erodes the sea floor.

b) Solution/Corrosion
- The solvent and chemical action of the sea water dissolves and removes the soluble
minerals that are found in the cliff or sea floor especially where there are limestone rocks.

c) Attrition
- Rock particles that are carried by waves are constantly colliding against each other and
wears them into smaller sizes.

d) Hydraulic Action/Quarrying action

i) Direct force of the wave
- The swash or breaking waves hit against the cliffs shattering the rocks.
ii) Compressed air action
- The breaking waves compress air into the cracks or joints in the cliff face. This widens
the cracks and parts of the rocks may break off.

Factors determining the rate of coastal/wave erosion-2011

a) The degree of exposure of the coast to wave erosion. The exposed coasts are eroded
more than the sheltered coasts which reduce the rate of erosion.
b) The duration of exposure of the coast to waves. The longer the exposure to the coastal
waves, the higher the rate of erosion.
c) Nature or supply of materials. Heavy materials or boulders have a higher erosive power
than fine materials.
d) Nature or structure of the coastal rocks. A coast made up of soft rocks or has well
jointed/fractured rocks are easily eroded when subjected to sea waves.
e) Nature or strength of the destructive waves. Strong waves will cause greater erosion by
hydraulic action and abrasion process.

Features Resulting From Wave Erosion

a) Cliffs
b) Wave-cut platforms
c) Blow holes
d) Geos
e) Arches
f) Caves
g) Stacks
h) Stumps

10
 a) Cliff and wave-cut platform
- Cliff is a steep rock face along a sea coast where land rises very sharply inland.
- Wave Cut Platform or Abrasion platform plane is a fairly flat surface on the shore
resulting from the continued wave erosion on the cliff.
Formation
 Wave erosion attacks a steeply sloping coast at the high tide level mark.
 As waves erode the coast, a notch is formed into the steep land.
 Part of the land over the notch becomes overhanging block and eventually
collapses forming a vertical rock face called a cliff.
 During high tides, there is undercutting at the base of the cliff by wave erosion
forming a notch.
 Continued wave erosion enlarges the notch to form a cave.
 Hanging rocks above the caves will weather and collapse.
 When this process is repeated over time, the cliff will retreat to form a fairly flat
surface on the shore called a wave-cut platform- 2019

b) Caves, Blow Hole and Geos

- Cave is a natural cylindrical tunnel like chamber extending into the cliff or into the
side of a headland.
- Blow Hole/ Gloup is a vertical shaft/hole which connects the surface to the cave
below.
- Geo is a longs narrow sea inlet formed when the roof of a cave between the blow hole
and the sea collapses.
Formation.
 Wave erosion through hydraulic action and abrasion attacks the base of a cliff
where there are lines of weakness.
 Small hollow is formed.
 Continued wave action enlarges the hollow to form a tunnel which extends
into the cliff.
 This results in a natural cylindrical tunnel-like chamber called a cave.
 Weathering especially by solution acts on the line of weakness from the
surface downwards.
 Eventually, a vertical shaft/hole connecting the surface to the cave below is
formed. This is a Blow hole.
 During high tide, water is forced through blowhole causing it to widen further.
 The roof of the cave eventually collapses forming a long narrow inlet called a
Geo.

11
 c) Bays and Headlands
- A coast may have alternating layers of hard and soft rocks.
- Wave action may easily erode the soft rock than resistant rock.
- This results in the formation of sea inlet called bay (2008) between two resistant
rocks.
- The resistant rocks forms finger like projections of land into the sea/ocean called
headlands.

12
 d) Natural Arch, stack and stump
- Arch is an opening from one side of a headland to the other.
- Stack a pillar of rock left standing on the seaward side.
- Stump is the base of stack left when it collapses as a result of erosion at the base.

Formation
 A coast with a headland is eroded by waves on opposite sides of its side.
 Waves attack both sides of a headland at right angle forming a notch.
 Waves erode a notch through abrasion and hydraulic action forming caves on
both sides of the headland.
 Continued wave erosion and weathering leads to the merging of the caves.
 The merging of the caves leads to formation of an arch.
 Continued wave action results in the collapse of the roof of the arch leading to
isolation of part of the headland on the seaward side.
 The isolated headland is called a stack-2011
 Farther wave action reduces the size of the stack forming a small rock pillar
called a stump which is visible during low tides.

2. Wave Transportation
- Examples of load moved by waves are such as shingle, sand, mud and other objects
dumped into the sea.
Sources of materials transported by waves.
 Rivers draining into the ocean/sea.
 Mass wasting and weathering along the coast.
 Wave erosion at the coast.
 Volcanic eruptions in the sea.
 Wind deposition in the sea/ocean.

13
 Waves transportation process.
- Waves transport load by a process called longshore drift.
- Long shore drift is progressive dragging of materials along the beach as a result of
waves breaking at an angle.
o Waves break at an angle.
o Swash pushes materials up the beach at an angle.
o Backwash brings them back at right angle to the edge of water.
o Process is repeated causing materials to be progressively dragged along the beach.

Factors Influencing Wave Transportation

a) Strength of waves
Strong waves carry large quantities of load over a long distance while weak waves carry
small quantities of load over a short distance.
b) Tides
Tides cause waves to break farther inland causing materials that were not in contact with
breaking waves to be moved about.
c) Ocean currents
Ocean currents cause movement of materials from one part of the ocean to another e.g.
coconut fruits from southern part of Africa to Gulf of Guinea by Benguela current.
d) Gradient of the shore
On gentle coasts transportation of materials is favoured by longshore drift while on a
steep coast they bounce off cliffs and remain floating.
e) Orientation of coast line/configuration of the coast.
Transportation by longshore drift is favoured where coast is aligned obliquely to the
direction of breaking waves while on transversely aligned coast swash moves materials
back and forth along the same line.
f) Nature of the load.
Lighter materials such as sand are carried over long distances while heavy load is
transported over a short distance.
3. Wave Deposition
- This the process in which materials transported by waves are laid down on the shore.

Factors Influencing Wave Deposition- 2014/2016/2018

a) Nature of the materials transported by the waves. The waves will deposit heavier
materials first while lighter materials will be deposited further and closer to the land.
b) The strength of the waves. Deposition occurs where the swash is stronger than the
backwash. A strong backwash will remove the materials hampering deposition.
c) Gradient of the shore. A gentle shore reduces the velocity of backwash causing
deposition of materials on the shore-2008
d) Depth of the water. Deposition occurs in shallow waters where waves break, lose energy
and drop the materials-2008
e) Configuration of the coast. Deposition occurs more where the coastline does change
direction inland since longshore drift is hampered.

14
 Features Resulting From Wave Deposition-2019
 Beaches
 Spits
 Mudflats
 Tombolo
 Cuspate foreland
 Dune-belts
 Bars
 Salt-marshes

a) Beaches
- A beach is gently sloping accumulation materials such as sand, shingle, pebbles and coral
fragments along the coast.

Formation of a beach.
- A beach forms where the shore is gently sloping.
- The breaking waves bring along with them a variety of materials.
- On breaking, the swash sends materials up the shore towards the land.
- The weak backwash spreads the materials along the coast as water withdraws.
- Materials like sand, boulder and coral fragments accumulate on the coast forming a
beach.

Conditions for the formation of a beach-2009/2010/2016

 Gently sloping land at the sea shore.
 Presence of abundant supply of materials to be deposited.
 Presence of a shallow shore or continental shelf.
 A relatively weak longshore current.
 A weak backwash or strong swash or constructive waves.

Features formed on Beaches.

i) Beach cusps
- They are projections of sand and shingles alternating with rounded depressions along
the beach.
ii) Beach Ridges/fills/swales
- They are low linear heaps of sand, boulders and shingle which are deposited along a
regular coast/ at the foreshore of a beach.

iii) Beach Berms

- This is a ridge or bench with a steep front.

iv) Beach Rock Shells

- Composed of sand, shells and pebbles cemented together by calcium carbonate
forming projections above the sand.

b) Spits
- A spit is a low lying narrow ridge of sand, shingle and pebbles with one end attached to
the coast and the other end projecting into the sea.

15
 Formation of a spit-2014/2016
 A spit forms on a shallow shore at a point where there is a sudden change in the
angle of the coastline.
 The longshore drift deposits materials such as sand, shingles and pebbles at such a
point.
 The deposition continues extending into a bay/mouth of a river with one end
attached to the land.
 Eventually, a low-lying ridge with one end attached to the coast and the other end
projecting into the sea is formed. This is a spit.

c) Tombolo
- A tombolo is a spit extending seawards from the mainland until it is attached to an
offshore island.
Formation of a tombolo
 Longshore drift deposits materials like sand and shingle on the mainland.
 A spit is formed.
 Longshore drift continues to deposit materials and the spit grows seawards.
 This elongated ridge of sand and shingle (spit) continues to grow seawards until it
links the mainland to an island forming tombolo.

16
 d) Bars
- A bar is a ridge of sand, shingles and mud deposited in the shallow water which lies
almost parallel to the coast.
Types of Bars
i) Bay bars
- Bay bar is a ridge of sand, shingles or pebbles joining two adjacent headlands.
Formation of a bay bar-2008
 Longshore drift deposits materials at the entrance of the bay.
 The deposits accumulate forming a spit/sand bar/ridge.
 Continued deposition elongate the spit, eventually blocking the mouth of the bay
forming a bay bar.
 The bay bar separates part of the sea from open sea enclosing sea water as
lagoon.

ii) Offshore bars/barrier beaches

- They are long, narrow ridges of sand off the shore and parallel to the coast. They are
separated from the coast by a shallow lagoon.
Formation of an offshore bar.
 On a very gently sloping shore, the wave start breaking offshore at low tide.
 A large amount of pebbles, sand and coral fragments are deposited.
 As the tide drops, waves keep on breaking offshore and deposition continues.
 The ridge of deposits grows higher almost running parallel to the shoreline
forming offshore bar.

e) Cuspate forelands
- A cuspate foreland is a broad triangular shaped deposits of sand or shingle projecting
from the mainland into the sea.

Formation of cuspate forelands.

 Formed when two spits growing towards each other join.
 The longshore drift starts to deposit sand or shingle on two adjacent headlands.

17
  These materials accumulate seawards to form spits.
 The two spits grow towards each other and eventually join forming a triangular
shaped feature enclosing a lagoon called a cuspate foreland.

COAST.
- A coast is the zone of contact between land and sea or ocean.
- Coasts can be concordant or discordant.
- A concordant/regular/longitudinal coast lies parallel to the great trend line of the land
e.g. the coast of Kenya between Malindi and Lamu.
- A discordant/irregular/traverse coast lies at right angle to prevailing winds hence
receiving more rainfall than concordant coast e.g. coast of Mombasa.

Terms associated with coasts.

- Coast- an inland area next to the coastline.
- Coastline- margin of land at the highest water level.
- Shore- area at the coast between high tide and low tide level.
- Shoreline- the point where the shore and sea water meet.
- On-shore winds- blows from the sea to the land.
- Off-shore winds- blows towards the sea.

Factors influencing development of Coasts-2009

a) Nature of waves- Destructive waves makes a coast to have erosion features while
constructive waves makes a coast to have depositional features.
b) Nature of the crustal rocks will either encourage rapid erosion or reduce the speed of
erosion. Hard rocks result in the formation of cliffs and headlands while less resistant
rocks result in the formation of inlets or bays.
c) Alignment of the coast in relation to the prevailing winds will either cause wave
erosion or deposition. Exposed coasts encourages erosion while sheltered coast
encourages deposition.
d) Climate of an area will determine the growth of coral polyps. Coral coasts develop in
tropical regions of the world or fiord coasts were formed as a result of ice erosion in
areas experiencing very cold climates.
e) The gradient or slope of the coast- steep coast encourage wave erosion resulting in the
formation of cliffs and wave-cut platforms. Gently sloping coasts cause increased
deposition resulting in the formation of beaches.
f) Change in the sea level results in drowning features along the coast to give rise to new
features or landforms. The fall in the sea level exposes features that were once covered
by the water.

18
 Basic types of Coasts
1. Submerged coasts
2. Emerged coasts
3. Coral coasts

1. Submerged Coasts
- They refer to a drowned coastline due to change in base level or relative rise in sea level.

Causes of submerged coasts-2000

 Rise in the sea level.
 Subsidence of the coastal land.
 Flooding along the coast.

Types of submerged coasts-2001

a) Submerged highland coasts
b) Submerged lowland coasts

a) Submerged Highland Coasts

- Form in areas where a coastal land which is sloping steeply into the sea is drowned due to
rise in sea level or subsidence of the coastal land.

Types of submerged highland coasts-2014/2016

 Ria coasts
 Fjords(fiords) coasts
 Dalmatian coasts/longitudinal coasts
- Ria coasts are submerged river mouths in the highland coasts e.g. islands of Lamu.
Manda, Siyu, Pate, and Kiwaiyu.
- Fjords(fiords) coasts are submerged glacial troughs found in highland areas which lie
adjacent to the coastline.
- Dalmatian coasts/longitudinal coasts are submerged mountains which lie parallel to the
coast.
Characteristics of submerged highland coasts







b) Submerged Lowland Coasts

- Formed when there is a rise in sea level along a lowland coast.
Types of submerged lowland coasts.
i) Estuarine Coast
- Coast characterised by broad shallow estuaries and mud flats which are visible at low
tide.
- Wider and shallower than rias e.g. coastlines of Guinea and Senegal.
ii) Fjord Coast
- Coast characterised by numerous inlets formed by submergence of glaciated rocky
lowland coasts.
- Have numerous islands and are deeper than rias e.g. S.E. coast of Sweden.

19
 Characteristics of submerged lowland coasts-2011
 The coasts have broad shallow indentations or estuaries.
 The coasts have several creeks.
 The coasts have extensive marshes or mudflats exposed at low tides.
 The coasts have broad continental shelf.

Features formed as a result of submergence of the coast-2000

 Fjords/fiords
 Rias/creeks
 Islands
 Estuaries
 Sounds
 Broad continental shelf
 Mudflats

2. Emerged Coasts
- They are exposed from the sea when part of the land which was formerly under water
becomes dry.
Causes of Emerged coasts.
 A fall in the sea level.
 An uplift of the coastal land.

Types of emerged coasts.

a) Emerged upland coasts
b) Emerged lowland coasts

a) Emerged Highland Coasts

- Erosional features that have developed along the former shorelines are exposed and
appear to be raised from the current shoreline.

Features in Emerged upland coasts-2014/2016

 Raised beaches
 Raised notches
 Raised wave-cut platforms
 Raised cliffs
 Raised caves
 Raised geos/blow holes
 Raised arches/stacks/stumps

b) Emerged Lowland Coasts

- Develops when the sea level falls exposing part of the continental shelf which then
becomes a coastal plain.

Features in Emerged lowland coasts

 Abandoned off-shore bars
 Sand spits
 Lagoons
 Mudflats
 Beaches

20
  Fall-line i.e. a point where rivers flowing into the ocean
descend through waterfalls and rapids from the edge of the
plateau into the emerged lowland coasts.
 Gentle coastal plains i.e. the original coast is raised to form a
gentle or near-flat plain.

3. Coral Coasts
- Coral is a limestone rock made up of exoskeletons of tiny marine organisms called coral
polyps.

Formation of coral rocks.

- Coral polyps extract lime from sea water to make their shells (exoskeletons) for their
protection.
- They live in colonies and when they die, their exoskeletons (made of calcium carbonate)
accumulate together with remains of other organisms like crustacean and molluscs
forming the ridge-like rock parallel to the shore known as coral limestone rock.
- Successive colonies grow on the solid rock which increase in size forming coral reefs
(large masses of coral rocks).

Conditions favourable for the growth of coral polyps-2007

 The water should be warm about 20°c- 30°c
 The water should be clear from silt/sand.
 The water should be shallow to allow sunlight to penetrate.
 The water should be saline.
 There should be plentiful supply of plankton/microscopic plant food.
 The water should be well oxygenated.
 There should be extensive submarine platforms for the formation of
colonies by the coral polyps.

CORAL REEFS
- A coral reef is a narrow ridge of coral rocks found at or near sea surface and run
parallel to the shoreline.

Types of coral reefs

a. Fringing reef
b. Barrier reef
c. Atoll
a) Fringing Reef-2009
- It is a coral platform formed closer to the shore and is separated from the shore by a
shallow lagoon.

Formation of fringing reefs-2016

- It is formed when coral polyps start building a reef near the shore /island extending
seawards.
- The rate of accumulation is faster seawards than towards the shore.
- The reef therefore becomes steeper seawards than towards the shore, exposing a
narrow and shallow lagoon.
- The accumulated coral materials form a fringing reef.

21
 b) Barrier Reefs-2009
- It is a coral platform formed a long distance away from the shore and is separated
from the shore by a wide deep lagoon.

Formation of barrier reef

- It is formed when coral polyps start building a reef near the shore /island extending
seawards.
- The rate of accumulation is faster seawards than towards the shore.
- The coral reef builds for a long distance from the shore.
- The reef therefore becomes higher seawards than towards the shore, exposing a wide
and deep lagoon.
- The accumulated coral materials form a barrier reef.

c) Atoll Reef
- Atoll is a circular, elliptical or horse shoe shaped coral reef enclosed by a deep
lagoon.
Formation of Atoll
- Coral starts to grow round an island forming a fringing reef.
- The island begins to sink or subsides as the level of sea rises.
- Coral continues to grow at a faster rate than the rate at which the sea is rising forming
barrier reefs around the island.
- The sea level rises submerging the island.
- The coral reefs forms a ring around a deep lagoon forming an atoll.

22
 Theories explaining the origin/formation of Barrier reef and Atolls.
1. Darwin’s Theory
o Fringing reef develops around an island.
o The island starts to sink.
o Coral continues to grow upwards to keep pace with rising sea level and seawards because
there is more food and water is clear.
o The reef extends great distance away from the land to become barrier reef.
o The island continues to sink becoming completely submerged.
o The barrier reef forms a ring of coral called atolls.

2. Murray’s Theory
o Fringing reef grows on a submarine hill.
o It disintegrates due to wave attack.
o Coral fragments accumulate on the seaward end.
o Polyps start building on it upwards where there is more food and clear water to form
barrier reef.
o The barrier reef forms a ring of coral called atolls.

3. Daly’s Theory
o During ice age there was withdrawal of water causing global fall in sea level.
o Coral growth was retarded by low temperatures.
o Waves pounded coral reefs and islands and flattened them to the same level as the sea.
o At the end of ice age temperatures began to rise again favouring the growth of coral once
again.
o More water was added to oceans causing polyps to continue to grow upwards to keep
pace with the rising sea level.
o They were permanently exposed on the surface to form atolls.

23
 Significance of Oceans-2014/2016
a. Oceans provides building materials e.g. sand, coral rocks
b. Oceans modify the climate of the adjacent lands thus enhancing agricultural activities.
c. Oceans are used by water vessels thereby enhancing transport/communication.
d. Oceans provide sites for recreational activities thus promoting tourism.
e. Oceans are habitats for aquatic life hence encouraging fishing.
f. Oceans contain minerals which are extracted for economic development.
g. Ocean waves/tides are harnessed to generate electric power for industrial/domestic
use.
h. Oceans provide water for cooling industrial plants.
i. Oceans encourage education and research.
j. Oceans provide ideal grounds for testing military weapons.

Significance of Coasts and Coastal Features

a) Submerged coasts like fiords and rias favour the development of ports and harbours.
b) Sheltered waters of the fiords provide favourable breeding grounds for fish which are
harvested for commercial/domestic purposes.
c) Coastal features like sand beaches, caves, fiords attract tourists earning a country foreign
exchange.
d) Raised coral reefs are a source of coral limestone used in the manufacture of cement for
building and construction.
e) Coastal features like lagoons, fiords, coral reefs, continental shelf provide suitable
grounds for marine life breeding e.g. Malindi marine national park.
f) Mudflats support the growth of mangrove trees which provide strong building poles.
Mangrove trees also provide sites for research purposes in biogeography.
g) Coasts form good sites for development of urban centres like New York, Tokyo, Mumbai,
Sao Paulo and Rio de Jeneiro.
h) Depositional features like sand dunes/coral reefs inhibits water transport and development
of ports. Tankers will hit coral reefs causing oil spills.
i) Emerged coasts have poor sandy soils unsuitable for growing of a variety of crops.

TOPICAL QUESTIONS
1. Explain three ways in which coral reefs contributes to the economic development
of Kenya. (6mks)- 2001
 Coral reefs attract tourists who earns Kenya foreign exchange used in
developing other sectors of the economy.
 Coral reefs provide breeding grounds for fish hence promoting fishing
industry along Kenyan coast.
 Coral reefs provide limestone coral used in manufacturing of cement for
building and construction.
24
  Many local people use coral rocks directly as building stones for houses thus
when sold generates income.
 Some coral stones are extracted and sold as ornaments.

2. Give four characteristics of continental shelf. (4mks)

 It is shallow and gently sloping.
 Its width varies 120-160km between places.
 Some have islands formed by marine erosion and coral reefs.
 Contain depositional materials brought in by rivers and spread out by currents.

3. Give three reasons why corals do not grow in polar areas. (3mks)
 Low water temperatures.
 Sea water of low salinity
 Presence of cold ocean currents
 Presence of deep submerged upland coasts.

4. Outline the distinctive characteristics of a fiord. (3mks)- 2008

 It is narrow sea inlet
 It has a U-shaped cross section
 It has steep walls
 It has hanging valleys
 It is shallower seaward and deeper landwards
 It has deep waters

5. State three conditions necessary for the formation of a spit. (3mks)- 1999

25
…………THE END…………

26