Mean Wave Height

The mean of all individual waves in an observation interval of approximately half an hour.

Glossary of Terms

Flora

The entire group of plants found in an area.

A system in flux, but with influxes equal to outfluxes.

Warm equatorial water which flows southward along the coast of Peru and Ecuador during February and March of certain years. It is caused by poleward motions of air and unusual water temperature patterns in the Pacific Ocean , which cause coastal downwelling, leading to the reversal in the normal north-flowing cold coastal currents. During many El Niño years, storms, rainfall, and other meteorological phenomena in the Western Hemisphere are measurably different than during non- El Niño years.

A warm current that usually appears around Christmas off the coast of Ecuador and Peru . It is often used to refer to episodic (3-5 year) events when the current is particularly intense and dominates the local population of organisms (the abundance of fish in particular). Such events lead to wider regional or global ocean-atmospheric perturbations whose manifestations range from increased sea surface temperatures in the tropical East Pacific to aberrant rainfall patterns. (see also ENSO ).

Hypoxic Waters

Waters with a low concentration of oxygen.

Nourishment

The process of replenishing a beach. It may occur naturally by longshore transport, or be brought about artificially by the deposition of dredged material or materials trucked in from upland sites.

Sand

Sediment particles, often largely composed of quartz, with a diameter of between 0.062mm and 2mm, generally classified as fine, medium, coarse or very coarse. Beach sand may sometimes be composed of organic sediments such as calcareous reef debris or shell fragments.

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Mean Wave Height