Responses of the tropical gorgonian coral Eunicea fusca to ocean acidification conditions

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Main Authors: Gómez, C E, Paul, V J, Ritson-Williams, R, Muehllehner, Nancy, Langdon, Chris, Sánchez, J A
Format: Dataset Open Access
Language:en
Published: PANGAEA 2015
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author Gómez, C E
Paul, V J
Ritson-Williams, R
Muehllehner, Nancy
Langdon, Chris
Sánchez, J A
author_facet Gómez, C E
Paul, V J
Ritson-Williams, R
Muehllehner, Nancy
Langdon, Chris
Sánchez, J A
collection Datos científicos de ciencias marinas y ambientales
contents Ocean acidification can have negative repercussions from the organism to ecosystem levels. Octocorals deposit high-magnesium calcite in their skeletons, and according to different models, they could be more susceptible to the depletion of carbonate ions than either calcite or aragonite-depositing organisms. This study investigated the response of the gorgonian coral Eunicea fusca to a range of CO2 concentrations from 285 to 4,568 ppm (pH range 8.1-7.1) over a 4-week period. Gorgonian growth and calcification were measured at each level of CO2 as linear extension rate and percent change in buoyant weight and calcein incorporation in individual sclerites, respectively. There was a significant negative relationship for calcification and CO2 concentration that was well explained by a linear model regression analysis for both buoyant weight and calcein staining. In general, growth and calcification did not stop in any of the concentrations of pCO2; however, some of the octocoral fragments experienced negative calcification at undersaturated levels of calcium carbonate (>4,500 ppm) suggesting possible dissolution effects. These results highlight the susceptibility of the gorgonian coral E. fusca to elevated levels of carbon dioxide but suggest that E. fusca could still survive well in mid-term ocean acidification conditions expected by the end of this century, which provides important information on the effects of ocean acidification on the dynamics of coral reef communities. Gorgonian corals can be expected to diversify and thrive in the Atlantic-Eastern Pacific; as scleractinian corals decline, it is likely to expect a shift in these reef communities from scleractinian coral dominated to octocoral/soft coral dominated under a "business as usual" scenario of CO2 emissions.
format Dataset Open Access
id pangaea_https___doi_org_10_1594_PANGAEA_847831
institution PANGAEA
language en
publishDate 2015
publisher PANGAEA
record_format pangaea
spellingShingle Responses of the tropical gorgonian coral Eunicea fusca to ocean acidification conditions
Gómez, C E
Paul, V J
Ritson-Williams, R
Muehllehner, Nancy
Langdon, Chris
Sánchez, J A
Alkalinity, total; Alkalinity, total, standard deviation; Animalia; Aragonite saturation state; Aragonite saturation state, standard deviation; Benthic animals; Benthos; Bicarbonate ion; Bicarbonate ion, standard deviation; Big_Pine_Shoals; Calcein; Calcein, standard error; Calcification/Dissolution; Calcite saturation state; Calcite saturation state, standard deviation; Calculated using CO2SYS; Calculated using seacarb after Nisumaa et al. (2010); Carbon, inorganic, dissolved; Carbonate ion; Carbonate ion, standard deviation; Carbonate system computation flag; Carbon dioxide; Cnidaria; Coast and continental shelf; Containers and aquaria (20-1000 L or < 1 m**2); Eunicea fusca; EXP; Experiment; Fugacity of carbon dioxide (water) at sea surface temperature (wet air); Growth/Morphology; Growth rate; Growth rate, standard error; Identification; Laboratory experiment; Mass change; Mass change, standard error; North Atlantic; OA-ICC; Ocean acidification; Ocean Acidification International Coordination Centre; Partial pressure of carbon dioxide, standard deviation; Partial pressure of carbon dioxide (water) at sea surface temperature (wet air); pH, standard deviation; pH, total scale; Potentiometric; Potentiometric titration; Replicates; Salinity; Single species; Species; Temperate; Temperature, water
Ocean acidification can have negative repercussions from the organism to ecosystem levels. Octocorals deposit high-magnesium calcite in their skeletons, and according to different models, they could be more susceptible to the depletion of carbonate ions than either calcite or aragonite-depositing organisms. This study investigated the response of the gorgonian coral Eunicea fusca to a range of CO2 concentrations from 285 to 4,568 ppm (pH range 8.1-7.1) over a 4-week period. Gorgonian growth and calcification were measured at each level of CO2 as linear extension rate and percent change in buoyant weight and calcein incorporation in individual sclerites, respectively. There was a significant negative relationship for calcification and CO2 concentration that was well explained by a linear model regression analysis for both buoyant weight and calcein staining. In general, growth and calcification did not stop in any of the concentrations of pCO2; however, some of the octocoral fragments experienced negative calcification at undersaturated levels of calcium carbonate (>4,500 ppm) suggesting possible dissolution effects. These results highlight the susceptibility of the gorgonian coral E. fusca to elevated levels of carbon dioxide but suggest that E. fusca could still survive well in mid-term ocean acidification conditions expected by the end of this century, which provides important information on the effects of ocean acidification on the dynamics of coral reef communities. Gorgonian corals can be expected to diversify and thrive in the Atlantic-Eastern Pacific; as scleractinian corals decline, it is likely to expect a shift in these reef communities from scleractinian coral dominated to octocoral/soft coral dominated under a "business as usual" scenario of CO2 emissions.
title Responses of the tropical gorgonian coral Eunicea fusca to ocean acidification conditions
topic Alkalinity, total; Alkalinity, total, standard deviation; Animalia; Aragonite saturation state; Aragonite saturation state, standard deviation; Benthic animals; Benthos; Bicarbonate ion; Bicarbonate ion, standard deviation; Big_Pine_Shoals; Calcein; Calcein, standard error; Calcification/Dissolution; Calcite saturation state; Calcite saturation state, standard deviation; Calculated using CO2SYS; Calculated using seacarb after Nisumaa et al. (2010); Carbon, inorganic, dissolved; Carbonate ion; Carbonate ion, standard deviation; Carbonate system computation flag; Carbon dioxide; Cnidaria; Coast and continental shelf; Containers and aquaria (20-1000 L or < 1 m**2); Eunicea fusca; EXP; Experiment; Fugacity of carbon dioxide (water) at sea surface temperature (wet air); Growth/Morphology; Growth rate; Growth rate, standard error; Identification; Laboratory experiment; Mass change; Mass change, standard error; North Atlantic; OA-ICC; Ocean acidification; Ocean Acidification International Coordination Centre; Partial pressure of carbon dioxide, standard deviation; Partial pressure of carbon dioxide (water) at sea surface temperature (wet air); pH, standard deviation; pH, total scale; Potentiometric; Potentiometric titration; Replicates; Salinity; Single species; Species; Temperate; Temperature, water
url https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.847831