Encrustations dominated by crustose coralline algae on coastal boulders from the last interglacial epoch at Tachero on Tenerife (Canary Islands)

Johnson, Markes E., Martín-González, Esther, Sansón, Marta, Uchman, Alfred, Ramalho, Ricardo S., Baarli, B. Gudveig, Madeira, José, Madeira, Patrícia, Stolarski, Jarosław, Ávila, Gonçalo C. and Ávila, Sérgio P. 2026. Encrustations dominated by crustose coralline algae on coastal boulders from the last interglacial epoch at Tachero on Tenerife (Canary Islands). Facies 73 (1) , 2. 10.1007/s10347-026-00753-5

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Abstract

The intertidal zone off a beach at Tachero on the northeast coast of Tenerife in the Canary Islands features large clasts (35 to 75 cm in diameter) composed of basalt and scoriaceous tuff crowned by the fossil remains of crustose coralline algae (CCA). Overall, the boulder field occupies an area 7 × 20 m parallel to the present-day shore. Part of the underlying shore platform exposes 1.5 m2 of basalt pavement covered with the patchy remnants of the same coralline algae. Accessible during low tide, most boulders are stabilized and held in place by their mass at an average estimated weight of 600 kg. Individual algal caps are largely preserved in an upright orientation. Algal rinds attain thicknesses from 3 to 20 cm that typically drape the sides of the largest boulders. Cut and polished crusts show variability in algal density between 35 and 80%, commonly with a significant proportion of basalt granules and pebbles enveloped within a web of algal growth. Thin sections reveal a pattern of small algal arches showing upward accretion with a knobby surface as much as a centimeter in relief that trap mixed lithic and mineral sand grains. Representative CCA belong to undetermined species in the genus Mesophyllum. Fragments of the articulated red alga Corallina also are abundant. Micro-relief across the fossil crusts captured molluscan gastropods (15 species) and bivalves (6 species) representing a mix of herbivores (35%), carnivores (31%), suspension feeders (26%), as well as omnivores and chemosymbiotics (4% each). The crusts also embed one species of scleractinian coral. Shell analysis by racemization technique provides a correlation with Marine Isotope Stage 5e of the last interglacial epoch of the Pleistocene.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Schools > Earth and Environmental Sciences Schools > Physical, Chemical & Environmental Sciences
Publisher:	Springer
ISSN:	0172-9179
Date of Acceptance:	27 September 2026
Last Modified:	27 Oct 2026 12:30
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/190453

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