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Titel |
Ocean acidification accelerates dissolution of experimental coral reef communities |
VerfasserIn |
S. Comeau, R. C. Carpenter, C. A. Lantz, P. J. Edmunds |
Medientyp |
Artikel
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Sprache |
Englisch
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ISSN |
1726-4170
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Digitales Dokument |
URL |
Erschienen |
In: Biogeosciences ; 12, no. 2 ; Nr. 12, no. 2 (2015-01-19), S.365-372 |
Datensatznummer |
250117777
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Publikation (Nr.) |
copernicus.org/bg-12-365-2015.pdf |
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Zusammenfassung |
Ocean acidification (OA) poses a severe threat to tropical coral reefs, yet
much of what is know about these effects comes from individual corals and
algae incubated in isolation under high pCO2. Studies of similar
effects on coral reef communities are scarce. To investigate the response of
coral reef communities to OA, we used large outdoor flumes in which
communities composed of calcified algae, corals, and sediment were combined
to match the percentage cover of benthic communities in the shallow back
reef of Moorea, French Polynesia. Reef communities in the flumes were
exposed to ambient (~ 400 μatm) and high pCO2
(~ 1300 μatm) for 8 weeks, and calcification rates
measured for the constructed communities including the sediments. Community
calcification was reduced by 59% under high pCO2, with sediment
dissolution explaining ~ 50% of this decrease; net
calcification of corals and calcified algae remained positive but was
reduced by 29% under elevated pCO2. These results show that, despite
the capacity of coral reef calcifiers to maintain positive net accretion of
calcium carbonate under OA conditions, reef communities might transition to
net dissolution as pCO2 increases, particularly at night, due to
enhanced sediment dissolution. |
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