A short-term in situ CO₂ enrichment experiment on Heron Island (GBR).
Ocean acidification poses multiple challenges for coral reefs on molecular to ecological scales, yet previous experimental studies of the impact of projected CO₂ concentrations have mostly been done in aquarium systems with corals removed from their natural ecosystem and placed under artificial light and seawater conditions. The Coral-Proto Free Ocean Carbon Enrichment System (CP-FOCE) uses a network of sensors to monitor conditions within each flume and maintain experimental pH as an offset from environmental pH using feedback control on the injection of low pH seawater. Carbonate chemistry conditions maintained in the -0.06 and -0.22 pH offset treatments were significantly different than environmental conditions. The results from this short-term experiment suggest that the CP-FOCE is an important new experimental system to study in situ impacts of ocean acidification on coral reef ecosystems.
Global Change Institute and Coral Reef Ecosystems Laboratory, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia. dkline@ucsd.edu
David I
DI
Kline
Lida
L
Teneva
Kenneth
K
Schneider
Thomas
T
Miard
Aaron
A
Chai
Malcolm
M
Marker
Kent
K
Headley
Brad
B
Opdyke
Merinda
M
Nash
Matthew
M
Valetich
Jeremy K
JK
Caves
Bayden D
BD
Russell
Sean D
SD
Connell
Bill J
BJ
Kirkwood
Peter
P
Brewer
Edward
E
Peltzer
Jack
J
Silverman
Ken
K
Caldeira
Robert B
RB
Dunbar
Jeffrey R
JR
Koseff
Stephen G
SG
Monismith
B Greg
BG
Mitchell
Sophie
S
Dove
Ove
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Hoegh-Guldberg
D000818:Animals; D037421:Anthozoa / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism*; D002119:Calcium Carbonate / Q000032:analysis; D002245:Carbon Dioxide / Q000378:metabolism*; D057894:Coral Reefs; D004463:Ecology / Q000379:methods*; D005843:Geography; D019015:Geologic Sediments / Q000737:chemistry; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D062312:Islands; D008386:Marine Biology / Q000379:methods; D000461:Rhodophyta / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism; D012623:Seawater / Q000737:chemistry; D013997:Time Factors; D014961:X-Ray Diffraction
D002245:Carbon Dioxide; D002119:Calcium Carbonate