A new study conducted by University of Adelaide researchers indicates that ocean acidification is driving certain fish species away from coral reefs, causing ripple effects throughout the ecosystem, Phys.org reported.
What's happening?
According to the study published in the Journal of Animal Ecology, ocean acidification is making it more difficult for corals to access the calcium carbonate they need to build and repair their skeletons. That, in turn, is resulting in less branched reefs, which makes them less appealing to certain damselfish species.
"Ocean acidification has the potential to reshuffle ecological communities globally, lead to the loss of key habitats and biodiversity, reduce fisheries' productivity, and have negative physiological impacts on many marine animals and plants," said Professor Ivan Nagelkerken of the University of Adelaide's School of Biological Sciences, who led the research.
Why is ocean acidification important?
Rising global temperatures — largely the result of our reliance on carbon dioxide-producing dirty sources such as gas and oil — have affected our oceans as well. In addition to raising ocean temperatures, the oceans' absorption of excess carbon dioxide makes seawater more acidic.
This ocean acidification is causing many problems in addition to harming coral reefs. One similar problem is that, by causing a decrease in calcium carbonate, the acidification is also making it difficult for organisms like oysters, clams, and sea urchins to build and maintain their shells.
Changes to ocean chemistry also have ripple effects throughout the entire ecosystem. As clam populations decrease, for example, the animals that rely on clams for food will also suffer, and so on and so forth.
What's being done about ocean acidification?
The most important step we can take to protect our oceans is to drastically reduce the amount of carbon we release into the atmosphere. This can be accomplished most simply by switching away from dirty energy sources like gas and oil and replacing them with clean, renewable sources like wind and solar.
We can also, on an individual level, do our best to stay away from brands that pollute our environment with wasteful plastic packaging and planet-overheating gases and try instead to give our business to brands that behave more ethically.
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