The effects of climate change are felt across the world with temperatures rising and snow and ice being less apparent in colder countries. The effects of climate change are prominent on the outside, however, what many people fail to realize is that it affects the ocean too, temperatures are rising and not only that but the ocean chemistry is changing as well due to increased amounts of carbon dioxide dissolving into the ocean. This leads to several complications in the coral reef ecosystems. The coral reef ecosystem is a variety of different species that interact with each other and the physical environment held together by calcium carbonate structures. They are built by colonies of underwater animals in marine waters that contain very few
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It has been estimated that 90% of this heat is heading to the ocean which has a big effect on marine life (http://www.businessinsider.com/ocean-is-absorbing-heat-from-climate-change-2015-8). Tropical areas in the Pacific ocean and the Indian ocean are experiencing a significant effect on the rising temperatures across the globe. This is setting a stage for major coral bleaching, something that happens when corals are under stress. When this occurs, the corals expel symbiotic algae that live in their tissues which cause them to turn a pale or white color. Thermal stress has already reached a critical point with areas such as the Pacific Ocean experiencing the bleaching of corals in several places such as Nauru, Kiribati, and the Solomon Islands. Areas like Tuvalu, Samoa, and the American Samoa are also expected to be affected in the near future. Another area that is being affected is the great barrier reef in Australia. An aerial survey has found that in fact, the great barrier reef is experiencing its second year of coral bleaching, which means it is the first time that the reef has not had several years to recover between events of …show more content…
As storms are starting to be higher in intensity, this also means that the corals will need more recovery time and as mentioned before, due to the ocean acidification it is already expected that as the ocean turns more acidic corals will already have trouble to recover from disturbance. In rare cases coral reefs will learn to cope with unexpected strong storms such as the great barrier reef in Australia however, this is not normally the case. An example of a coral reef which has not been able to cope as well is the Caribbean reef. A comprehensive analysis by more than 90 experts has been conducted with 35,000 surveys at nearly 100 locations in the Caribbean since 1970 and this data shows that the region's corals have declined by more than
It has been estimated that 90% of this heat is heading to the ocean which has a big effect on marine life (http://www.businessinsider.com/ocean-is-absorbing-heat-from-climate-change-2015-8). Tropical areas in the Pacific ocean and the Indian ocean are experiencing a significant effect on the rising temperatures across the globe. This is setting a stage for major coral bleaching, something that happens when corals are under stress. When this occurs, the corals expel symbiotic algae that live in their tissues which cause them to turn a pale or white color. Thermal stress has already reached a critical point with areas such as the Pacific Ocean experiencing the bleaching of corals in several places such as Nauru, Kiribati, and the Solomon Islands. Areas like Tuvalu, Samoa, and the American Samoa are also expected to be affected in the near future. Another area that is being affected is the great barrier reef in Australia. An aerial survey has found that in fact, the great barrier reef is experiencing its second year of coral bleaching, which means it is the first time that the reef has not had several years to recover between events of …show more content…
As storms are starting to be higher in intensity, this also means that the corals will need more recovery time and as mentioned before, due to the ocean acidification it is already expected that as the ocean turns more acidic corals will already have trouble to recover from disturbance. In rare cases coral reefs will learn to cope with unexpected strong storms such as the great barrier reef in Australia however, this is not normally the case. An example of a coral reef which has not been able to cope as well is the Caribbean reef. A comprehensive analysis by more than 90 experts has been conducted with 35,000 surveys at nearly 100 locations in the Caribbean since 1970 and this data shows that the region's corals have declined by more than