The Role Of Climate Change In Coral Reefs

Improved Essays
Is climate change real? If the corals in coral reefs were asked, I believe they would say yes. I happen to agree with them. Coral reefs are dying off or becoming unhealthy due to too warm temperatures and ocean acidification. Population declines, warmer temperatures, and ocean acidification are caused by climate change, which in turn is thought to be caused by humans. A definition of climate change is; a change in global or regional climate patterns which can be attributed to increased levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide that is produced by the use of fossil fuels (climate change). While it is true that the world goes through natural periods of warming and cooling, there should be no doubt that humans have caused the warming period to speed …show more content…
I believe this is strong evidence of climate change. Modern humans have been around for around 200,000 years (NHM), only a fraction of 50 million, yet the rate at which ocean acidification has occurred has been the quickest ever recorded. In humans, the blood is around a 7.4 on the pH scale, and even the smallest change, such as 0.2, can cause problems like seizures or death (Bennet). If the smallest change can make a difference in a human, a small change in acidity can make an even bigger difference in smaller organisms. These changes can cause major problems with the small organisms themselves, or they can cause the organism to die off. The mass loss of an organism can affect the ocean’s ecosystem. The small organism that died off due too acidic water, can affect the ocean’s food chain. A larger organism, such as a fish or sea lion, would lose the food it needed to eat to survive. Along the line, the die off could also affect humans. Less fish could affect people whose livelihood is fishing due to the fact that the fish have died off because they aren’t able to obtain the necessary nourishment, or because they’re sensitive to the change in acidity. Communities that thrive on fish and seafood would also be affected. Even though it is not a visible aspect of climate change, such as melting of polar ice caps or coral bleaching, but it is an important one that will affect every human

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    For years this planet has been undergoing vast changes in its environment, wildlife, and mostly our oceans. The acidifying of our oceans is because of all the Carbon Dioxide that is absorbed by seawater. A chemical reaction that occur which reduces seawater's pH. All of the Carbon Dioxide is being put into our atmosphere by the burning of fossil fuels. Calcium carbonate minerals are the building blocks for the skeletons of shells of many marine organisms. In certain areas where life now congregates in the ocean, the seawater, is supersaturated with calcium carbonate mineral.…

    • 429 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    The acidification of our oceans increases the likelihood of coral reefs to be destroyed or broken down due to erosion. These nearly extinct ecosystems that are either becoming unstable or are being destroyed forces species to find another environment to make their home or to adapt in. The low survival rate of coral reefs under such harsh conditions makes the survival rate of other organisms detrimental as well because it leaves them vulnerable with the reduced amount of living spaces for fish. Leaving fish open to predators, it also has a harmful effects on a fish’s organs. Even though fish do not have shells, they are still affected by the changes that ocean acidification can cause.…

    • 1155 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    Scientific Validity of “Study links altered brain chemistry, behavioral impairments in fish exposed to elevated CO2” Coral reefs are having a problem with pH levels and they are dying some places around the world right now, because of it. This is not only affecting the coral reefs, but the animals that live in them and survive with them. There is a Scientific Study called “Study links altered brain chemistry, behavioral impairments in fish exposed to elevated CO2” which discusses the behavior and neurological impairments of coral reef fish due to more CO2 and acidic levels of pH. More CO2 causes lower levels of pH and makes it more acidic and very dangerous for fish. Overall this is a poor scientific article, because it has only one good source…

    • 1738 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Growing up in the Florida Keys, I have been surrounded by the ocean my entire life and have personally witnessed it gradually get destroyed over the years. Because of tourism playing a huge role in the Florida keys, our beaches and oceans are left polluted and leaving our reefs to extinction. Not only in the Keys, but throughout Florida our waters are heavily polluted by the great amount of tourism in our state. In the Florida Keys and the Caribbean, there has been a vast decline in staghorn and elkhorn corals leaving the reefs scattered since the 70’s. As I continued to observe and research this topic, I noticed that humans overlook the effects that they cause and focus on the benefits they receive.…

    • 1378 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Ocean Acidification Effect

    • 1820 Words
    • 8 Pages

    If ocean acidification affect the number of squid special can also influences the fisheries as squid. Many squid species are supporting the productive fisheries, and there is about three million per year of squid are catch globally (Halpern). If there were decreased in the number of squid, this could be a negative impact on the commercial species that feed on it. California is the largest fishery for squid in the united state, it provide 25 million dollars in revenue during 2008 (California Department of Fish and Game). We can expect that the declines the number of squid populations will have drastic consequences for squid fisheries and also very important to California.…

    • 1820 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Well-discussed Marissa. You are correct that the ocean acidification implies to the fundamental changes in the chemical balance or chemistry of the Earth’s oceans due to the increased levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere caused by burning of fossil fuels (e.g. coal, fuel oil, and natural gas). Ocean acidification is distinct from global climate change; however, the global threats to ecosystems resulting from ocean acidification are theoretically similar as global warming and also, both are caused by carbon dioxide; therefore, several marine biologists have called ocean acidification as “the other CO2 problem” (Doney et al. ,2009; Jurmain p.475). This rapid increase of the CO2 into the atmosphere is being produced by human activities; and…

    • 332 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Topic B: Ocean acidification and coral reefs Introduction • Ocean acidification is a reduction in the pH of the water in the ocean as a result of increased carbon dioxide uptake in the ocean due to humans burning fossil fuels at such a high rate. • Unless drastic changes are made in regards to CO2 emissions, the rate of ocean acidification is projected to significantly increase over the next century. It is currently estimated that without any changes the pH of the oceans will be 7.8 by 2100 ( ). • Climate change and its negative impacts on… • List all points that will be discussed PARAGRAPH 1 - Ocean acidifications potential to affect coral (focus on individual coral colony) Ocean acidification alters a range of marine ecosystems by damaging foundation organisms, such as living corals.…

    • 567 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Texas Drought Analysis

    • 695 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The lower the pH, the higher the acidity. Oceans have acidified by 30% from pre-industrial levels, and scientists expect that number will increase to 100% by the end of the century. As acidity increases, animals like scallops and oysters have a hard getting the calcium carbonate they need to build their shells. Their shells become thinner, growth slows down, and death rates rise. Reefs are extremely sensitive to both warming and acidification.…

    • 695 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Ocean acidification can be defined as the change in ocean chemistry driven by the oceanic uptake of chemical inputs to the atmosphere, including carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur compounds (Guinotte and Fabry, p.320). Today, the overwhelming cause of ocean acidification is anthropogenic atmospheric carbon dioxide. Over the past two-hundred years, the rapid increase in anthropogenic atmospheric carbon dioxide has directly led to decreasing ocean pH through air-sea gas exchange, driven by the land-use changes such as, the burning of fossil fuels, deforestation, industrialization, and cement production (Guinotte and Fabry, p.320). The problem with the change in pH is that since the industrial revolution, the pH of surface oceans has dropped 0.1 pH…

    • 827 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Great Barrier Reef (GBR) is home to hundreds of species of coral, fish, and other animals. Its total area is roughly the same as that of Italy or Germany. As the world’s largest coral reef ecosystem, the GBR supports more species per unit area than any other marine ecosystem. The reef also contributes around 6 billion dollars annually to Australia’s economy. However, the reef is under considerable stress due to a recently increasing trend in sea temperature, ocean acidification, sea level, and severe weather events.…

    • 974 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Ocean Acidification Essay

    • 1116 Words
    • 5 Pages
    • 5 Works Cited

    Increased ocean acidification isn’t the only thing affecting the ocean, but it is very problematic because it erodes aragonite which is a mineral of calcium carbonate. In other words it kills corals and causes the hard exoskeleton to erode. Action needs to be taken to ensure the survival of corals and the creatures that rely on coral reefs to survive. Coral reefs are sources of food for millions of people, but also are sources of medicines. As coral reefs disappear so do the organisms that are mutualistic to it.…

    • 1116 Words
    • 5 Pages
    • 5 Works Cited
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Another big problem to consider is that ocean acidification is an error in the carbon cycle. Carbon cycle refers to the biogeochemical cycle where circulation of carbon in the atmosphere occurs and in order to maintain the level of carbon in the atmosphere the ocean must take in any access remaining onto themselves. The carbon cycle procedure is quite essential for certain marine life-forms survival and creation. However, when the levels of carbon concentration increases, the H in pH also increases causing the pH values to decline. As the level of carbon starts to increase, it creates an acid called H2CO3 which inhibits calcification procedures on oysters and crustaceans (Kantharia 2015).…

    • 917 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Glaciers melting, water rising, the earth getting hotter: what do we usually attribute this to? Global warming, also known as global climate change. According to Merriam-Webster dictionary, global warming is “the recent increase in the world 's temperature that is believed to be caused by the increase of certain gases (such as carbon dioxide) in the atmosphere.” Interestingly enough, most of the scientific community is in turmoil about if global warming is really happening, making it difficult for the population to know what to think.…

    • 1324 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    (Gain attention) President Barack Obama once said “There’s one issue that will define the contours of this century more dramatically than any other, and that is the urgent threat of a changing climate.” (Reveal Topic) This statement by President Obama on climate change conveys how important the fight against climate change is. (Establish Credibility) I became interested in this topic after getting into a disagreement regarding climate change with my grandfather and how he doesn’t “buy into that liberal bullshit,” so I set out on a mission to prove him wrong by conducting research with the goal of fully understanding the climate change debate. (Preview the Body)…

    • 1384 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Climate change has been happening long before humans. However, the changes are minimal. Earth has been through many stages of global warming and cooling by natural causes. The variations in the Earth’s orbit can fluctuate how warm or cold the temperature can get. The closer the Earth is to the sun, the warmer the climate would be and the farther away from the sun, the cooler it would be.…

    • 1227 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays