New Research Suggests: Coral Reefs Can Recover From Climate Damage

ScienceDaily (Jan. 10, 2010) — A study by the University of Exeter provides the first evidence that coral reefs can recover from the devastating effects of climate change. Published Jan. 11, 2010 in the journal PLoS ONE, the research shows for the first time that coral reefs located in marine reserves can recover from the impacts of global warming.

Scientists and environmentalists have warned that coral reefs may not be able to recover from the damage caused by climate change and that these unique environments could soon be lost forever. Now, this research adds weight to the argument that reducing levels of fishing is a viable way of protecting the world's most delicate aquatic ecosystems.
Increases in ocean surface water temperatures subject coral reefs to stresses that lead quickly to mass bleaching. The problem is intensified by ocean acidification, which is also caused by increased CO₂. This decreases the ability of corals to produce calcium carbonate (chalk), which is the material that reefs are made of.
Approximately 2% of the world's coral reefs are located within marine reserves, areas of the sea that are protected against potentially-damaging human activity, like dredging and fishing.
The researchers conducted surveys of ten sites inside and outside marine reserves of the Bahamas over 2.5 years. These reefs have been severely damaged by bleaching and then by hurricane Frances in the summer of 2004. At the beginning of the study, the reefs had an average of 7% coral cover. By the end of the project, coral cover in marine protected areas had increased by an average of 19%, while reefs in non-reserve sites showed no recovery.
Professor Peter Mumby of the University of Exeter said: "Coral reefs are the largest living structures on Earth and are home to the highest biodiversity on the planet. As a result of climate change, the environment that has enabled coral reefs to thrive for hundreds of thousands of years is changing too quickly for reefs to adapt.
"In order to protect reefs in the long-term we need radical action to reduce CO₂ emissions. However, our research shows that local action to reduce the effects of fishing can contribute meaningfully to the fate of reefs. The reserve allowed the number of parrotfishes to increase and because parrotfish eat seaweeds, the corals could grow freely without being swamped by weeds. As a result, reefs inside the park were showing recovery whereas those with more seaweed were not. This sort of evidence may help persuade governments to reduce the fishing of key herbivores like parrotfishes and help reefs cope with the inevitable threats posed by climate change."
Professor Mumby's research was funded by National Environment Research Council (NERC) and the Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation.
Reef facts

• A coral reef is made up of thin layers of calcium carbonate (limestone) secreted over thousands of years by billions of tiny soft bodied animals called coral polyps.
• Coral reefs are the world's most diverse marine ecosystems and are home to twenty-five percent of known marine species, including 4,000 species of fish, 700 species of coral and thousands of other plants and animals.
• Coral reefs have been on the planet for over 400 million years.
• The largest coral reef is the Great Barrier Reef, which stretches along the northeast coast of Australia, from the northern tip of Queensland, to just north of Bundaberg. At 2,300km long, it is the largest natural feature on Earth.
• Coral reefs occupy less than one quarter of one percent of the Earth's marine environment, yet they are home to more than a quarter of all known fish species.
• As well as supporting huge tourist industries, coral reefs protect shorelines from erosion and storm damage.

High quality reef videos by Professor Peter Mumby can be viewed at: www.reefvid.org
The main funding for the research came from Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation and the Natural Environment Research Council.

Adopt a Coral Reef Today!

Adopt a Coral Reef

You can help protect the world's most beautiful and diverse places when you Adopt a Coral Reef today.
The Nature Conservancy's Adopt a Coral Reef program raises funds for important coral reef projects in the Dominican Republic, Palau and Papua New Guinea.
As some of the most biodiverse and wondrous places in the world, coral reefs need our immediate attention. If the present rate of destruction continues, 70% of the world's coral reefs will be destroyed by the year 2050.
With your help, The Nature Conservancy is protecting the world's coral reefs and all the corals, fish and people that depend on them.
The Nature Conservancy's Adopt a Coral Reef program provides critical funds for the permanent protection and restoration of some of the last great places on Earth.
Through Adopt a Coral Reef, you can help protect the following threatened habitats:

• Dominican Republic
• Palau
• Papua New Guinea

By adopting a coral reef today, you can make a world of difference.

Reports of Extensive Damage to America Samoa Coral Reef

Posted at 08:15 on 07 October, 2009 UTC

An advisory group on American Samoa’s coral reefs says anecdotal reports on the impact of last week’s tusnami show extensive structural damage in some areas.
The Coral Reef Initiative’s co-ordinator, Jeremy Goldberg, says teams of divers have been inspecting the reefs and he expects to be able to issue a report on their condition within the next couple of days.
He says the territory’s renowned for having some of the Pacific’s most pristine and resilient coral, with five times as many species as Hawaii.
Mr Goldberg says clearing the reefs of debris quickly is crucial to prevent it from causing more damage as it’s moved by wave action.

“Some of the anecdotal evidence coming in is that there has been a tremendous amount of structural damage done to a few of the coral reefs around some of the heavily impacted areas. Large amounts of debris have been seen on some of the reefs. But it’s looking like the damage is moderate in most places and even minimal in some habitats so that’s a good sign.”

Jeremy Goldberg of American Samoa’s Coral Reef Initiative.

News Content © Radio New Zealand International
PO Box 123, Wellington, New Zealand

Global Warming Good News for Coral Reefs

Coral reefs around the world could expand in size by up to a third in response to increased ocean warming and the greenhouse effect, according to Australian scientists.

"Our analysis suggests that ocean warming will foster considerably faster future rates of coral reef growth that will eventually exceed pre-industrial rates by as much as 35 per cent by 2100," says Dr Ben McNeil, an oceanographer from the University of News South Wales. "Our finding stands in stark contrast to previous predictions that coral reef growth will suffer large, potentially catastrophic, decreases in the future," says McNeil, who led and published the research in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, with colleagues Dr Richard Matear of the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) and Dr David Barnes from the Australian Institute of Marine Science, Townsville.

Previous research has predicted a decline of between 20 and 60 percent in the size of coral reefs by 2100 relative to pre-industrial levels due to increasing CO2 levels in ocean surface waters. The new research suggests that present coral reef calcification rates are not in decline and are equivalent to late 19th century levels.

Coral reefs are built from calcium carbonate when red algae cement together a framework of coral skeletons and sediments. Seawater surface temperatures and the quantity of carbonate in seawater dictate their growth rate.

The Australian scientists have observed the calcification-temperature relationship at significant reef-building colonies around the world in the Indo-Pacific and at massive Porites reef colonies in Australia, Hawaii, Thailand, the Persian Gulf and New Ireland.

The predicted increase in the rate of coral reef calcification is most likely due to an enhancement in coral metabolism and/or increases in photosynthetic rates of red algae, according to the scientists. They used projections of ocean warming and CO2 concentration from a CSIRO climate model that accounts for atmosphere-ice and ocean carbon cycles.

"Our results show that increases in coral reef calcification associated with ocean warming outweigh decreases associated with increased atmospheric CO2", says CSIRO’s Dr Richard Matear. "While initially showing a decrease in calcification up to 1964, ocean warming outweighs the CO2 effect and stimulates recovery of coral reef calcification. Our results represent an average over the entire coral reef community and it will be important to undertake more specific regional analysis of models to better understand future changes in regions such as Australia’s Great Barrier Reef."

Dr David Barnes from the Australian Institute of Marine Science in Townsville says: "Coral reef calcification and the changes suggested in our research are separate to the adverse future effects of coral bleaching which is associated with the corals symbiotic micro-algae, and the significant impacts of human activities such as poor water quality, and unsustainable fishing on many of the worlds coral reefs."

Dr Ben McNeil | Source: EurekAlert!

Coral Reefs In Crisis

* Coral reefs are dying at an alarming rate worldwide.
* An estimated 25% of coral reefs have already disappeared and an estimated two-thirds of all coral reefs are at risk today.
* An estimated 88% of the reefs in Southeast Asia - the most species rich reefs on earth - are at risk.
* Since 1975, more than 90% of the reefs in the Florida Keys have lost their living coral cover (study by Dr. Phil Dustan).
* Threats to the world's coral reefs include:
o -Pollution
o -Disease
o -Over-fishing
o -Dynamite and cyanide fishing
o -Sedimentation
o -Bleaching caused by rising ocean temperatures

* Called the "rainforests of the sea," coral reefs are the greatest expression of ocean life, and the most biodiverse ecosystem on Earth with 30 of 34 known animal phyla present.
* Unlike the rainforest, there is no comprehensive global baseline map of living coral reefs. This is urgently needed. A satellite mission dedicated to remote sensing of coral reefs can provide this critical global baseline.

Save The Reef

10 Easy Steps to Help Protect Coral Reefs

Do you want to make a difference every day? Want to learn about simple, effective actions you can take to help save coral reefs and the fish, animals, and plants that depend on them? You've come to the right place!

1. Conserve water: The less water you use, the less runoff and wastewater will pollute our oceans.
2. Help reduce pollution: Walk, bike or ride the bus. Fossil fuel emissions from cars and industry raise lead to ocean warming which causes mass-bleaching of corals and can lead to widespread destruction of reefs.
3. Use only ecological or organic fertilizers: Although you may live thousands of miles from a coral reef ecosystem, these products flow into the water system, pollute the ocean, and can harm coral reefs and marine life.
4. Dispose of your trash properly: Don't leave unwanted fishing lines or nets in the water or on the beach. Any kind of litter pollutes the water and can harm the reef and the fish.
5. Support reef-friendly businesses: Ask the fishing, boating, hotel, aquarium, dive or snorkeling operators how they protect the reef. Be sure they care for the living reef ecosystem and ask if the organization responsible is part of a coral reef ecosystem management effort.
6. Plant a tree: Trees reduce runoff into the oceans. You will also contribute to reversing the warming of our planet and the rising temperatures of our oceans.
7. Practice safe and responsible diving and snorkeling: Do not touch the reef or anchor your boat on the reef. Contact with the coral will damage the delicate coral animals, and anchoring on the reef can kill it, so look for sandy bottom or use moorings if available.
8. Volunteer for a coral reef cleanup: You don't live near a coral reef? Then do what many people do with their vacation: visit a coral reef. Spend an afternoon enjoying the beauty of one of the most diverse ecosystems on the Earth.
9. Contact your government representatives: Demand they take action to protect coral reefs, stop sewage pollution of our oceans, expand marine protected areas and take steps to reverse global warming.
10. Spread the word: Remember your own excitement at learning how important the planet's coral reefs are to us and the intricate global ecosystem. Share this excitement and encourage others to get involved. Send a free coral reef e-card today!

Break-Down of How Corals Grow

Corals use many reproductive strategies, but it now seems that nearly all large, reef building species release millions of gametes once a year, in precisely synchronized mass-spawning rituals. These spectacular displays allow the stationary animals to mix genetically and to disperse offspring over great distances. Such a copious delivery system is also believed to maximize the chances of fertilization, and at the same time overwhelm predators with more food than they can possibly consume. The exact cues triggering the annual phenomenon remain unclear. They are generally believed to be linked to water temperatures as well as the lunar, tidal, and twenty-four hour light cycles.

coral
Releasing Eggs
A few mass-spawners, known as gonochoric species, have separate male and female colonies, and depending on their sex, either release sperm or eggs, which, with luck, will cross fertilize somewhere in the vast water column. Most broadcasters, however, are hermaphrodites (both sexes occurring in each individual coral animal, or polyp). Such polyps once a year package both sperm and eggs into near little pink bundles that are expelled to the caprice of the currents when a biological clock strikes.

coral
Coral Smoking
(Releasing Sperm)
Fertilization, which is possibly aided by sperm attractants, produces planulae larvae that are able to free-swim by day two. Now, in the grasp of tides and currents, the tiny new coral embarks on a grand voyage that can last for months and carry it hundreds of miles from its origin. If the speck of life somehow survives the ever-hungry mouths of plankton-pickers, filter-feeders, and jelly plankton, it will one day mysteriously sense suitable hard substrate below, settle, and begin producing a tiny calcium skeleton – the genesis of a great coral colony that could live for hundreds of years.