Flow velocities within coral reefs are greatly reduced relative to those at the water surface.The in-reef flow controls key processes that flush heat, cycle nutrients and transport DRY+ LIGHT INCON PADS sediment from the reef to adjacent beaches, all key considerations in assessments of reef resilience and restoration interventions.An analytical framework is proposed and tested with a suite of high-resolution numerical experiments.We demonstrate a single parameter that describes the Toddler Outerwear total coral frontal area explains variation of horizontally averaged velocity within a reef canopy across morphologies, densities, and flow depths.
With the integration of existing data of coral cover and geometry, this framework is a practical step towards the prediction of near-bed flows in diverse reef environments.