Oceans: Coral Seas
TWIG. (n.d.). Oceans: Coral Seas [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www-twig-world-com.db.plcscotch.wa.edu.au/film/oceans-coral-seas-1218/
Rising Ocean Temperatures
National Geography. (2016, September 16). Rising ocean temperatures cooking coral reefs [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQ10xBl8XMQ
Oceans are acidifying at a rate faster than any time in the last 300 million years. This year, we've seen the most drastic and damaging coral bleaching event in recent history - and it's attributable to warmer, more acidic oceans. It's time to take bigger steps to reduce our impact on the ocean's ability to restore itself. (National Geography, 2016)
Coral Bleaching
"Climate change is the greatest global threat to coral reef ecosystems. Scientific evidence now clearly indicates that the Earth's atmosphere and ocean are warming, and that these changes are primarily due to greenhouse gases derived from human activities." (National Ocean Service, 2018)
Overview
- Coral bleaching. (2019). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved from https://school-eb-com-au.db.plcscotch.wa.edu.au/levels/high/article/coral-bleaching/571337
Coral bleaching has a variety of causes. It may result from increases in seawater temperature, particularly when associated with elevated levels of solar irradiance (e.g., ultraviolet radiation), or it may be caused by changes in seawater chemistry (e.g., due to ocean acidification or pollution), increased levels of sediment in seawater, or a coral’s exposure to sodium cyanide (a chemical used in the capture of coral reef fish). - National Ocean Services. (2018). How does climate change affect coral reefs? Retrieved from https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/coralreef-climate.htmlAs temperatures rise, mass coral bleaching events and infectious disease outbreaks are becoming more frequent. Additionally, carbon dioxide absorbed into the ocean from the atmosphere has already begun to reduce calcification rates in reef-building and reef-associated organisms by altering seawater chemistry through decreases in pH. This process is called ocean acidification.
- Slezak, M. (2016, June 7). The Great Barrier Reef: a catastrophe laid bare. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/jun/07/the-great-barrier-reef-a-catastrophe-laid-bare
Australia’s natural wonder is in mortal danger. Bleaching caused by climate change has killed almost a quarter of its coral this year and many scientists believe it could be too late for the rest. Using exclusive photographs and new data, a Guardian special report investigates how the reef has been devastated – and what can be done to save it
Great Barrier Reef
- Great Barrier Reef. (2017). Coral Bleaching. Retrieved from http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/__data/assets/ pdf_file/0007/252385/GBRMPACoralBleaching_FactSheet_Updated5May2017.pdfCoral bleaching is a sign that corals are under stress. Corals are able to cope in a limited range of environmental conditions but when these limits are exceeded (e.g. temperature), they experience stress.
- Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority. (2018). Climate Change. Retrieved from http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/our-work/threats-to-the-reef/climate-changeCoral bleaching, and a severe tropical cyclone that occurred in 2017, impacted 80 per cent of the Reef over the last two years.The effects are likely to have far-reaching consequences for the ecosystem and its marine life, as well as its outstanding universal value as a world heritage area.
Western Australia
- Department of Environment and Conservation. (2012). Extreme ocean warming drives coral bleaching across WA. Retrieved from https://www.dpaw.wa.gov.au/images/documents/about/science/pubs/infosheets/sdis049.pdfRecord La-Niña conditions during the 2010-11 summer resulted in unprecedented levels of ocean warming spanning the coastline from the Pilbara in the tropical north to Albany in the temperate south. These anomalously high temperatures caused significant coral bleaching across coral communities spanning 12o of latitude from the Montebello and Barrow Islands in the north, to Rottnest Island in the south.