[Coral-List] Coral mortality in a warmer and acidified ocean. A new study at CO2 vents in Scientific Reports

[Fiorella Prada - Marine Science Group]

Dear All,



we would like to share a recent study on the effect of seawater warming and
acidification on coral mortality and growth, published in Scientific
Reports.





This field study shows the combined warming and acidification effects on
mortality and growth of Mediterranean coral species transplanted, in
different seasons, along a natural pH gradient generated by CO2 vents. We
found a synergistic adverse effect on mortality rates for solitary and
colonial, symbiotic and asymbiotic corals. The net calcification rate of
the symbiotic species was not affected by decreasing pH, regardless of
temperature, while in the two asymbiotic species it was negatively affected
by increasing acidification and temperature, suggesting that symbiotic
corals may be more tolerant to increasing warming and acidifying conditions
compared to asymbiotic ones.





Please find below the references and the link to the article:





Fiorella Prada, Erik Caroselli, Stefano Mengoli, Leonardo Brizi, Paola
Fantazzini, Bruno Capaccioni, Luca Pasquini, Katharina E. Fabricius, Zvy
Dubinsky, Giuseppe Falini, Stefano Goffredo (2017) Ocean warming and
acidification synergistically increase coral mortality. *Scientific Reports*,
7: 40842. doi: 10.1038/srep40842



http://www.nature.com/articles/srep40842







Cheers,







Fiorella Prada on behalf of all authors



Marine Science Group



Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences (BiGeA)



University of Bologna