Siliciclastic foundations of Quaternary reefs in the southernmost Belize Lagoon, British Honduras

Analyses of a closely spaced lattice of seismic profiles from the southernmost Belize Lagoon, combined with logs of nearby drill holes, reveal that the Quaternary (late Pleistocene plus Holocene) reefs and carbonate sediments are growing on siliciclastic sediments which have an alluvial and delta-like morphology. The residual relief of these coastal-plain deposits localized initial coral growth or an accumulation of calcareous skeletal material; favored sites for these were elevations such as levees and bars of remnant channels, and deltaic lobes.