[Coral-List] Corals Persist But Bioerosion Rises in Low-pH Waters (Anne Cohen)

[Alan Duckworth]

Hi,
A few manipulative studies have already explored the effects of lower pH on sponges that bore into corals or bivalves (links below). Effects on sponges are mixed with some species unharmed by a lower pH, while other species have higher mortality or experience bleaching due to loss of their photosynthetic symbionts. Regardless of any detrimental effect on sponges, for all species studied so far, a lower pH promotes erosion into calcium carbonate substrates

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/gcb.12334/abstract
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00227-014-2466-y
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00227-012-2053-z
http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0045124

Regards, Alan 

Alan Duckworth, PhD
Research Scientist
Australian Institute of Marine Science
PMB 3 Townsville MC, QLD 4810, Australia
Phone +61 7 4753 4232; Mobile 04 1977 0999
Email a.duckworth at aims.gov.au


-----Original Message-----
From: coral-list-bounces at coral.aoml.noaa.gov [mailto:coral-list-bounces at coral.aoml.noaa.gov] On Behalf Of Eugene Shinn
Sent: Wednesday, 10 June 2015 12:33 AM
To: coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
Subject: [Coral-List] Corals Persist But Bioerosion Rises in Low-pH Waters (Anne Cohen)

The Woods Hole press release is interesting. I was concerned about the proposed connection between acidification and increasing numbers of borers. One would like to see some experimental evidence that borers actually favor lower pH. Do such experimental data exist? Borers that attack wood piling, boats, and limestone do favor areas of restricted circulation over areas of increased oceanic circulation. For example, Biscayne Bay supports far more boring and fowling organisms than do the more open waters of the Florida Keys and the Bahamas. Those differences in boring fauna are not related to pH. Most likely the greater abundance of rocky intertidal surfaces in Biscayne Bay that boring and other fowling organisms favor combined with longer retention time of larvae in an environment favorable to their success account for the bay’s increased numbers of boring organisms. Those conditions also are found in the many lagoons of Palau. Could it be that the greater numbers of boring organisms that attack coral skeletons there has nothing to do with acidification? Experimental data may be needed to determine if pH is the culprit. Gene



On 6/8/15 12:00 PM, coral-list-request at coral.aoml.noaa.gov wrote:
> Corals Persist But Bioerosion Rises in Low-pH Waters (Anne Cohen)

-- 


No Rocks, No Water, No Ecosystem (EAS)
------------------------------------ -----------------------------------
E. A. Shinn, Courtesy Professor
University of South Florida
College of Marine Science Room 221A
140 Seventh Avenue South
St. Petersburg, FL 33701
<eugeneshinn at mail.usf.edu>
Tel 727 553-1158
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