Sponges erode coral reef more efficiently as ocean acidification increases
By Chris Thomas
26 December 2013 (Science Network) – Ocean warming and acidification are leading to an increase in the rate of sponge biomass and bioerosion. Combined German-Australian research, recently presented at the Ninth World Sponge Conference in Fremantle, used past, present and future climate scenarios to explore how changes are occurring. The Australian Institute of Marine Science’s Dr Christine Schönberg, based at UWA’s Oceans Institute, planned and shared fieldwork and experiments with German bioerosion expert Dr Max Wisshak. […] Values for bioerosion were measured from the water chemistry via alkalinity of the culture water or by weighing eroded substrates under water—a method called buoyant weight measurement. Through this, researchers found sponge bioerosion was stronger in more acidic water. Bioerosion is the erosion of hard materials caused by living organisms (such as microbes, sponges, sea urchins, fish, snails, bivalves and worms), which have specific ways to attack a variety of materials. “Some weaken materials by rasping or removing particles, which is mechanic bioerosion,” Dr Schönberg says. “But what’s important in the context of climate change and ocean acidification is the so-called chemical bioerosion, an etching process often involving acid that dissolves the materials attacked. “If the water becomes more acidic, the bioeroders spend less energy to work against a chemical gradient and need to produce less acid to create the same effect.” Dr Schönberg says sponges are often the most important bioeroders in warm waters and can be dominant on coral reefs, especially if the reefs are stressed. Very active sponge species can remove as much as 20kg calcium carbonate rock per square metre each year—rock that was slowly created by corals is now reduced to fine sediments by the sponges. “Normal coral growth rates are usually less than 20kg per square metre a year so when these sponges become more active, they may erode the reef faster than it can grow,” Dr Schönberg says. [more]
If people are talking to non-aware humans about this, remember the metaphor of using vinegar to clean shower heads. You can put your hand in vinegar and nothing painful happens, but overnight vinegar can erode all the limescale in your shower head. This is the same thing in our oceans–a little teensy bit of acid goes a long way. Anyone who cooks or farms understands climate change already, because they are the principles we use to cook and farm. Thanks for this, Much love from Down Under.