[Coral-List] coral calcifiction paper

[Douglas Fenner]

Environmental controls on modern scleractinian coral and reef-scale
calcification.  Scientific Reports

http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/3/11/e1701356?utm_campaign=toc_advances_2017-11-10&et_rid=17045989&et_cid=1656609

Open-access
Abstract

Modern reef-building corals sustain a wide range of ecosystem services
because of their ability to build calcium carbonate reef systems. The
influence of environmental variables on coral calcification rates has been
extensively studied, but our understanding of their relative importance is
limited by the absence of in situ observations and the ability to decouple
the interactions between different properties. We show that temperature is
the primary driver of coral colony (*Porites astreoides* and *Diploria
labyrinthiformis*) and reef-scale calcification rates over a 2-year
monitoring period from the Bermuda coral reef. On the basis of multimodel
climate simulations (Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5) and
assuming sufficient coral nutrition, our results suggest that *P.
astreoides* and *D. labyrinthiformis* coral calcification rates in Bermuda
could increase throughout the 21st century as a result of gradual warming
predicted under a minimum CO2 emissions pathway [representative
concentration pathway (RCP) 2.6] with positive 21st-century calcification
rates potentially maintained under a reduced CO2 emissions pathway (RCP
4.5). These results highlight the potential benefits of rapid reductions in
global anthropogenic CO2 emissions for 21st-century Bermuda coral reefs and
the ecosystem services they provide.

Cheers,  Doug

-- 
Douglas Fenner
Contractor for NOAA NMFS Protected Species, and consultant
PO Box 7390
Pago Pago, American Samoa 96799  USA

New online open-access field guide to 300 coral species in Chagos, Indian
Ocean
http://chagosinformationportal.org/corals

Saving corals from the effects of climate change.

http://discovery.economist.com/environment/5379134246001-saving-corals-from-the-effects-of-climate-change?kw=all&csid=ppc&ref=trump100

Open access.  17 minutes long.