<
https://theconversation.com/adapt-move-or-die-repeated-coral-bleaching-leaves-wildlife-on-the-great-barrier-reef-with-few-options-179570>
"To our horror, another mass coral bleaching event may be striking the Great
Barrier Reef, with water temperatures reaching up to 3℃ higher than average in
some places. This would be the sixth such event since the late 1990s, and the
fourth since 2016.
It comes as a monitoring mission from the United Nations arrives in Queensland
today to inspect the reef and consider listing the World Heritage site as “in
danger”.
As coral reef scientists, we’ve seen firsthand how the Great Barrier Reef is
nearing its tipping point, beyond which the reef will lose its function as a
viable ecosystem. This is not only due to climate change exacerbating marine
heatwaves, but also higher ocean acidity, loss of oxygen, pollution, and more.
Scientists are at our own tipping points, too. The reef is suffering
environmental conditions so extreme, we’re struggling to simulate these
scenarios in our laboratories. Even though Australia has world-class
facilities, we are proverbially beating our heads against the wall each year as
conditions worsen.
It’s getting harder for scientists to predict how these conditions will affect
individual species, let alone the health and biodiversity of reef ecosystems.
But let’s explore what we do know."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
