Corals are more than just “coral”

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I’ve updated the Science Review section of the blog with a new article entitled “Nitrogen fixation by symbiotic cyanobacteria provides a source of nitrogen for the scleractinian coral Montastraea cavernosa“. In short, the article shows that symbiotic cyanobacteria living within the tissues of the Caribbean coral Montastraea cavernosa are able to fix nitrogen, providing a previously unknown supplementary source of nutrition for the symbiotic zooxanthellae within the coral tissues. The more we delve into the physiology of the coral ‘holobiont’ (a term used to describe the coral host and the consortium of other organisms associating with it – zooxanthellae, bacteria, fungi, algae), the more pathways and surprises we find – corals are fascinating creatures. Read more here.

Global warming and the Acroporid decline in the Caribbean

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The Center for Science & Public Policy have released a document entitled Are U.S. Coral Reefs Endangered by Global Warming? , which is picking up a fair amount of controversy amongst all parties involved. I think this is a fairly important issue that needs to be resolved (debunking the pseudo-science): more from me on this shortly, along with analysis from coral researchers who have been examining this phenomenon for over three decades.

Updated:

Let’s start with the basics of the Center for Science-Based Public Policy (in the efforts of transparency). It’s all to easy to allege that the Centre is a mere puppet-front for petroleum industry propaganda, considering has received a grand total of $793,575 in funding from ExxonMobil since 1998 (not too dissimilar to our very own Australian right-wing “think tanks”, also funded by ExxonMobil subsidiaries).
Amongst other people of notoriety associated with the Center for Science-Based Public Policy is Senator James Inhofe who was awarded the “Center Honoree” in 2004. For those of you who don’t know Sen Inhofe’s legendary reputation, he is not only as a renowned climate change skeptic, but also the author of such famous quotes as:

“I don’t have to tell you about reading the Scriptures, but one of mine that I’ve always enjoyed is Romans 1, 22 and 23. You quit worshipping God and start worshipping the creation — the creeping things, the four-legged beasts, the birds and all that. That’s their (the environmentalists’) god. That’s what they worship. If you read Romans 1:25, it says, ‘and they gave up their God and started worshipping the creation.’ That’s what we are looking at now, that’s what’s going on. And we can’t let it happen.”

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Endangered coral becomes climate warning system – News from Ningaloo Reef

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Reuters Summit-Endangered coral becomes climate warning system

By James Grubel

CANBERRA, Oct 1 (Reuters) – The future is looking grim for coral reefs, home to bright tropical fish and a lure for tourists worldwide but also an early warning system for climate shift, leading coral scientist Ove Hoegh-Guldberg says.

Warming seas and increased ocean acidity will devastate more than 90 percent of the world’s corals over the coming century unless urgent action is taken, Hoegh-Guldberg told Reuters.

“You’ll get tougher corals surviving, but most of them are not tough enough to survive the sorts of temperatures we’re going to throw at them over the next 100 years,” Hoegh-Guldberg said.

The dire outlook points to a severe impact on tourism and the destruction of habitat for tropical fish, which are crucial to food supplies for millions of people around the world.

Hoegh-Guldberg, professor of marine science at Australia’s University of Queensland, has made a career studying tropical corals and Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. But he is worried there may be little coral left for future generations.

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Reef restoration

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“Scientists try to save coral micro species”
U.S. scientists have launched a project in Puerto Rico designed to save threatened microscopic species. The Smithsonian Institution’s National Zoo recently acquired 12,000 microscopic Elkhorn coral larvae harvested by zoo scientists as part of an international collaborative program to save the species. The researchers hope to return the animals, once they are grown, to their wild ocean habitat.

Zoo reproductive scientist Mary Hagedorn and invertebrate keeper Mike Henley traveled to Puerto Rico last month with to collect and artificially inseminate coral. Hagedorn is pioneering the cyropreservation of coral sperm and eggs, trying to create a genome resource bank that will help preserve the genetic diversity of coral.

“More subway cars slated for reefs”
More than 1,600 old New York City subway cars are destined for the deep where they will make up new artificial reefs off the Atlantic Coast. The MTA this week approved a $6.3 million contract to farm out the aging cars to reef projects off New Jersey, Delaware and other states, Newsday reported Saturday.

Officials say the cavernous cars that once hauled scores of Big Apple strap-hangers provide excellent shelter for young fish and also will make a great destination for recreational divers. The Long Island newspaper said some environmentalists are concerned about asbestos in some of the older cars despite a New Jersey study that concluded this week that cars used to create earlier reefs had minimal environmental impact.

More climate change cynicism

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Wired magazine summarises the Washington conference on the issue of climate change succinctly:

Rice delivered her message at a White House-hosted climate change meeting, held just days after the United Nations met to discuss post-Kyoto greenhouse gas restrictions. Bush, predictably, skipped the UN meeting: he’s refused to ratify Kyoto, and won’t accept strict, mandatory climate change measures, even though nearly ever other nation agrees that they’re necessary. Even China and India are ready to negotiate.”(“Condi’s Latest Doublespeak: Fight Climate Change Like Terror” – Wired)

On the topic, it’s interesting to note the selective editing of Rice’s empty rhetoric by the media:

“If we stay on our present path, we face an unacceptable choice: either we sacrifice global growth to secure the health of our planet, or we sacrifice the health of our planet to continue with fossil-fuelled growth.” (“Warm words unconvincing” – Herald Sun)

“If we stay on our present path, we face an unacceptable choice: either we sacrifice global economic growth to secure the health of our planet or we sacrifice the health of our planet to continue with fossil-fuelled growth.” (“US pushes for clearer goals on clean air” – The Australian)

In stark contrast to the full text from the US State Government transcript:

“If we stay on our present path, we face an unacceptable choice: Either we sacrifice global economic growth to secure the health of our planet or we sacrifice the health of our planet to continue with fossil-fueled growth. This is a choice that we must refuse to make. Instead, we must cut the Gordian Knot of fossil fuels, carbon emissions, and economic activity. This current system is no longer sustainable, and we must transcend it entirely through a revolution in energy technology. So our third task is to work with private industry to develop and bring to market new energy technologies that not only pose no risk to economic growth, but can actually accelerate it.” (US State Government

Keep watching for the UN meeting in Bali this December. Over this side of the world, climate ‘shift’ is “no cause for panic” for John Howard (Link) – even the face of food shortages, water restrictions and escalating prices ( Link). In a surprising move, the federal government have comitted to new national “clean energy” goals by 2020 (Link), including solar, wind and clean coal, but also dropped the term “renewable”, potentially paving the way for nuclear energy (Link). The Sydney Morning Herald has already labelled the federal governments climate strategy “a disaster” (link)

Climate-news roundup

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Track records speak for themselves: Australian Government on climate change

As I have posted here on Climate Shifts recently, a meeting scheduled in Bali, Indonesia, for December is aimed at jump-starting talks to find a successor to the Kyoto Protocol. As it was, the Kyoto Protocol was designed as the first of a series of steps to set the world on the pathway toward controlling and eventually reducing emissions (or would have been, if Bush and Howard would have ratified the treaty). Now the Foreign Minister, Alexander Downer says that the Australian government is ready to discuss climate change. To quote the Minister, “This is a discussion about what to do post 2012. And we are fully able to participate and to vote.” I guess that sounds a little hollow doesn’t it given track records so far! (Link to ABC Article)

“Sea change in the response to climate change”

“U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said a one-day high-level meeting on climate change on Monday was a turning point in the battle against global warming. “What I heard today is a major political commitment for a breakthrough in climate change in Bali,” Ban said. A meeting scheduled in Bali, Indonesia, for December is aimed at jump-starting talks to find a successor to the Kyoto Protocol, which seeks to curb climate-warming emissions. “Science has spoken clearly,” Ban said at a final news conference. “Now we need a political answer.” (Link to Reuters Article)

“Climate change biggest security risk”

“Climate change poses this century’s biggest security threat, possibly forcing the migration of millions of people from countries such as China, Australia’s top policeman has warned. Water and food shortages could send waves of migrants across oceans and borders in the Asia-Pacific region, causing social disruption and unrest, said Federal Police Commissioner Mick Keelty. “The potential security issues are enormous and should not be underestimated.” Even if only some of the predictions of catastrophic change wrought by global warming materialised, “climate change is going to be the security issue of the 21st century,” Keelty said.”(Link to AFP Article)

While Australia fiddles, the world meets.

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Sunday will see 150 countries meeting under the UN umbrella – let’s hope that we get more than aspirational targets. Australia government under the APEC banner has continued to be vague on emission targets. Without emission targets, then can be no framework; with no framework, you have no action. And with no action, we will not see Australia’s (or for that purpose the world’s) emissions being reduced any time soon.

Leaders gather ahead of key UN climate summit
UNITED NATIONS (AFP) — World leaders were gathering here Sunday for an unprecedented UN summit aimed at whipping up action against climate change. About 150 countries are taking part in Monday’s one-off event, some 80 of them at the level of heads of state and government, United Nations sources said.

The meeting has been called by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, who has declared global warming one of the top priorities of his mandate.

The summit aims at breaking a crippling deadlock in efforts to craft a global treaty on greenhouse gases, but diplomats discounted that it would be a session where leaders would spell out detailed emissions cuts.

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Coral Sea Marine Park

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Caspar Henderson over at Coral Bones has been blogging a story that I had previously missed: WWF Australia is calling for the entire Coral Sea region to be declared a marine protected area (read more: ‘Plunder or protect’)

From The Age newspaper:

The campaign to create the world’s largest marine park, to be launched today by the conservation organisation WWF, aims to protect the abundant shark populations and marine diversity of the Coral Sea, which comprises 780,000 square kilometres bordering the Great Barrier Reef.

The area, a new global diving hot-spot now worth more than $11 million a year in tourism, is under threat due to pollution and illegal fishing to satisfy the market for shark fin. (Link)

CO2 emissions could violate EPA ocean-quality standards within decades

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In a commentary in the September 25, 2007, issue of the Geophysical Research Letters (GRL), a large team of scientists state that human-induced carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions will alter ocean chemistry to the point where it will violate U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Quality Criteria [1976] by mid-century if emissions are not dramatically curtailed now. This is the first recognition that atmospheric CO2 emissions will cause ocean waters to violate EPA water quality criteria.

 

The paper also says that carbon-dioxide induced “changes in ocean chemistry within the ranges predicted for the next decades and centuries present significant risks to marine biota” and that “adverse impacts on food webs and key biogeochemical process” would result.

 

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