Another Victim of Climate Change
Coral reefs are an important aspect of marine ecosystems, and are highly susceptible to disturbance. Coral bleaching results from warming water temperatures, which is an increasing problem due to climate change. Madagascar is one of the most affected areas and continues to be at high risk of mass bleaching events following increasing temperatures, high fishing pressures, and tourism. To combat this, we examined the weight of the propagated fragments of 4 different coral species that have shown signs of resiliency and adaptability to warming temperatures, and are native species found within the area. Our main study area is within the Mascarene Islands ecoregion within the Indian Ocean and southwest of the island of Madagascar, and our study species consist of Acropora hyacinthus, Acropora gemmifera, Pocillopora damicornis, and Porites cylindrica. We did preliminary measurements of temperature variability within our study site, and separated it into moderate variability and high variability, where we set up two growth plots with multiple plantings each species, using a buoyancy weight increment system. Weighing occurred before and after 2 years of growth in-situ, which allowed for proper environmental variations to affect the study and growth of the coral. Both temperature and variety of coral were shown to impact the weight of the growing coral fragments, and 3 out of 4 coral varieties showed strong growth results.
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Photo 1: https://s.abcnews.com/images/International/coral-reef-philippines-gty-aa-200210_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg
Photo 2: https://www.sciencemag.org/sites/default/files/styles/article_main_large/public/coral_1280p.jpg?itok=XzrVab8l |