Climate Change And Its Effects

What is climate change exactly? Climate change happens when long-term weather problems occur. For example: global warming can be a part of climate change because the weather changes and the heat increase very slowly. Climate change is becoming a huge problem and is affecting the world's ecosystems and communities. The world could become one huge oven or it won't. Nobody knows.

Global temperatures are steadily rising due to anthropogenic causes; this increase in temperature is causing changes to ocean properties that can impact the organisms that call this medium their home. One of the most evident impacts of climate change on the world’s oceans is the resulting raise in ocean surface temperatures. Rising ocean temperatures can directly affect biogenic reef building organisms like corals which produce some of the most diverse and productive ecosystems in the world. Previous studies within this field have determined that climate change is a notable stressor for these corals causing large scale bleaching events; where they release their photosynthetic symbionts. Once the symbionts of these organisms are released corals begin to starve and ultimately die resulting in

Since early 1998, climate change has been demonstrating its effects in increasing the ocean 's temperature (West & Salm, 2003). Warm water stress corals causing the phenomenon known as coral bleaching, by which expulsion of colourful symbiotic algae the zooxanthellae, vital for

Coral reefs have been called the rainforests of the ocean and are one of the most diverse and important ecosystems on the planet. This paper will explore how global warming has effected these fragile ecosystems. It will focus on the impact of increasing ocean temperatures on coral reefs.

These increasing ocean temperatures, which result in global warming, are mostly due to the amount of CO2 released in the air, therefore threatening the existence of the coral reef systems (Cole, Pratchett and Jones). The reduction of the coral reef ecosystems are attributed to the climate induced bleaching from the past decade. The loss of coral reef environments has direct affects to the habitat of an organism within the reefs (Cole, Pratchett and Jones), leading to a decrease in biodiversity (Coker, Pratchett and Munday).

Coral reefs have one of the highest biodiversity of animals in one ecosystem than any others on the entire planet. Coral reefs are colorful habitats in the ocean, some of which are not too far from the shore. They are made from skeletons of calcium carbonate and animals, which make a rocky substance known as coral. Coral reefs are a home to many different types of creatures that live under the sea, some are unknown to a majority of the human species. “Coral reefs are sometimes referred to as the ‘rainforest of the sea’ because they teem with life and abound in diversity” (Agardy). Sadly, due to the many factors of global warming, these natural treasures are dying from what is called “bleaching”. Coral bleaching happens from the warming temperature

Coral reefs are home to more than four thousand species of fish and eight hundred hard coral species and are among the most biologically diverse environments on the planet, being home to thirty-two of the thirty-four phylum known to exist. These critical ecosystems also serve to protect the coastlines from storms, absorbing over ninety percent of force from wind generated waves. Coral reefs also provide economic benefits to coastal cities drawing tourists as well as commercial and recreational fisherman to the area. Across the globe Coral reefs and their surrounding communities are at risk, of sedimentation, eutrophication, toxicity, and coral bleaching due to changes in the environment from agricultural and terrestrial runoff. A wide variety of biogenous and terragenous materials are carried into the river by wind and rain and eventually are emptied into the oceans where they can potentially damage coral reefs.

The fact of the matter is that all species, all biodiversity, is or will be affected by climate change. As of now, we have seen that the ocean’s temperature has been rising in an alarming manner. Coral reefs have suffered greatly because of this. Coral reefs hold a massive amount of species and protect us, the humans, from things like floods,

As it was already established, a myriad of marine species depend on coral reefs because of the favorable conditions they have to offer. The formation of complex food webs and symbiotic relationships is directly related to specific, stable properties, that if changed, certain organisms would be sure to disappear, disrupting the natural order of the ecosystem. Accordingly, if the water temperature in coral reefs rises, it suddenly becomes an unsuitable environment for algae to bloom, resulting in a lesser number of symbiotic relationships between plankton and corals. Consequently, not only will water filtration systems be hindered, but herbivore grazing will become less common; causing several species of fish to stop frequenting this waters,

Tropical coral reefs are predicated to be increasingly under threat of the rising acidity and warmth of our oceans, due to climate change (Bellard et., 2012).

Coral reefs are the highest threatened environments in the ocean, as a result of anthropological interactions that create huge stress and temperature abnormalities, these human interaction generate (1) pollution, (2) acidification of the oceans and (3) Climate Change, all these factors contribute to place coral reefs ecosystems on the UNESCO and CITES lists as "in danger" (Gattuso et al., 2014).

“We are living on this planet as if we have another one to go to.” (Unknown) This quote by an unknown source depicts the common mindset of the modern human. At the start of the 20th century America had had numerous major advancements in technology and business. These advancements helped to put America ahead, but at a cost. Emissions of Carbon Dioxide, other greenhouse gases and aerosols have been steadily increasing since this time period and show no signs of stopping soon (How Do We Know..). What is the reason for this? Could it be that people do not know what they are doing? Maybe people just do not care? Many persons in America will deny the changing climate because they claim there are no facts or they do not believe in the facts that scientists have come to find. The advancement of climate change through production of Carbon Dioxide, greenhouse gases and overuse of aerosol products can be blamed on mankind’s waste and disregard.

Human health is slowly diminishing, the ocean and sea levels are increasing dramatically, and plant life around the earth is vanishing- all due to the longly debated topic of climate change. Climate change is no myth; it’s a further analysis of how our planet is suffering the negative effects of human carelessness, which can be observed through the glaciers worldwide. Due to fossil fuel consumption and deforestation, greenhouse gasses are beyond regular amounts and affecting the glaciers, causing them to melt and increase ocean and sea levels.

Coral reefs are one of, if not, the most biodiverse ecosystems on earth are being destroyed at a rapid pace. Just recently in the past few weeks, the great reef barrier had been declared ~25% dead and people were freaking out on twitter. Before I took this class, I had no clue how much coral reefs meant to us and to the organisms they are home to. Coral reefs are not only a home to ecosystems, but they also provide billions of dollars in food, jobs, and provide coastal protection. Coral reefs are being affected and destroyed by humans in many ways, some are; water pollution, mining and construction around sea coasts, and climate change. The greatest threat is climate change caused by global warming, due to greenhouse gases resulting from human activities. Rising temperatures are warming the ocean, and due to the rise in temperature coral reefs are bleaching. During coral bleaching the corals turn white, because they lose pigment due to expelling the algae zooxanthellae. The research being done is vital because we get a better understanding of coral reefs and how we can better manage corals and if they can adapt and survive rapid climate change.

Coral reefs are the oldest of marine ecosystems, the youngest approximately 10,000 years old, and are often referred to as the rain forests’ of the ocean. Found commonly in tropical waters less than deep, these areas have a high availability of nutrients and access to sunlight required for the process of photosynthesis. Coral reefs are amongst the most complex and bio-diverse ecosystems, spanning approximately 284,300 km2 (Spalding & Ravilious et al., 2001) providing a home for 25% of all marine life. An increase in greenhouse gasses in our atmosphere is occurring due to the increase in population and burning of fossil fuels, this is a major cause of climate change. The average global temperature is rising, with