Halper, E. T. (2018, July 14). In Light of Climate Change, Scientists Race to Create a More-Resilient Coral Reef. Retrieved July 17, 2018, from https://www.chieftain.com/life/in-light-of-climate-change-scientists-race-to-create-a/article_46a2bc38-b979-5aee-bf2a-3f524bc87a6f.html
Scientists in the Florida Keys are taking pieces of coral from the moment they were spawned and putting them in tanks filled with hotter and more acidic water that mimics the conditions coral will face in the future due to climate change. Many of the coral dies, but the coral that survives the strengthening is put back in the coral reef. A goal of many of the scientists that are working on saving the coral is to keep the coral alive long enough for governments to take action to decrease climate change.
Strengthening the coral is necessary to save the coral reefs that are a primary source of food to as many as a billion people and are a home to one fourth of all marine species. In the past, scientists studied die-offs, which are caused by bleaching when large increases in ocean temperatures kill large portions of reefs and turn the coral white. Coral used to be able to restore itself and grow back, but it happens more frequently now and that is no longer the case.
I really do like reading about the proactivity that many researchers have adopted in response to our dying plant. Bleaching of coral reefs is a worldwide problem, and needs to be solved. It is very interesting how they are trying to populate the coral reefs with the most resilient corals in order to make a sustainable reef as our earth warms.
Do you know of any specifi types of coral that are more resistant to the higher acidity of ocean water?
The water surrounding the Rock Islands in Palau is really acidic, and the corals there are surprisingly really healthy and that reef hosts a lot of species.