SAVE OUR CORAL REEFS!
What is Climate Change?
Climate Change is a world-wide issue caused by global warming. This is the result of the buring of fossil fueles and greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere.
Coral Bleaching
Coral bleaching is a phenomenon in which the zooxanthellae die and the corals are left with only their white calcium carbonate skeleton. The disappearance of zooxanthellae can be triggered from a number of environmental stress factors such as too much shading or sun light, pollution, and low tides. As a result of the lack of zooxanthellae, the coral has no food supply and is more susceptible to diseases. In many cases, the symbiotic algae do not return, and corals die (EPA, National Ocean Service).
Climate Change and its Affect on Coral Reefs
Climate Change and Coral Reefs
Coral are very sensitive to change in their environment. Changes in temperature, amoung of sunlight, and water quality often result in the coral's death. Unfortunately, the increasing severity of global warming and climate change have meant death for many reefs. Climate change effects the major necessitites of coral reefs; temperature and water clarity. This has been killing many corals, which, in turn, puts stress on the ecosystem and leads to the death of many other species. Climate change is also causing ocean acidification, in which excess CO2 increasing the ocean’s acidity. The acid in the water is rough on corals, which become frail and slowly dissolve as they lose the ability to absorb enough calcium carbonate for their skeleton (University of Michigan) .
Other Threats
Other than climate change, threats to coral reefs include overfishing, tourism, and pollution. Overfishing disrupts the ecosystem of the coral reefs by changing food chains causing major long term effects such a ecological balance and biodiversity (15). “over fishing and unregulated tourism have has rendered the parrot fish nearly extinct through much of the Caribbean” (16). Particularly parrotfish and sea urchins are instrumental in regulating the ecosystem of the coral reefs in the Caribbean. They eat algae that takes up sunlight need for the the coral to survive. The dwindling numbers of parrotfish and sea urchins have caused the coral reefs to reduce by 50% from 1970-2012 (16). In addition to overfishing and tourism, pollution has also struck the reefs in and around the Caribbean. In the waters around the Yucatan resort of Cancun. Part of the reef have died due to excess sewage flowing into the ocean. "The net effect of pollution is as bad or maybe worse than the effects of global warming," said Iglesias, a co-author of the study in the journal Science on how climate change affects reefs (17).
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