Marine life is an important part of our various ecosystems and makes up a variety of industries. These animals make up a large part of our economy and are a valuable resource for food. The ocean suffers from pollution due to human actions but one of the larger problems to its inhabitants is ocean acidification. Ocean acidification is caused by the ocean absorbing a large amount of carbon dioxide.
These large amounts of carbon dioxide can be pinpointed back to our use of fossil fuels and burning other materials. Our current issue has been building up since the industrial revolution and has gifted us a little time before the full effect of greenhouse gases kicked in. This absorption of carbon dioxide has occurred before in the Paleocene-Eocene Period Thermal Maximum and was theorized to occur due to volcanic activity.
This was proved via soil and rock samples that dated back 55.8 million years ago.Temperatures rose five degrees Celcius or nine degrees Fahrenheit. Ocean acidification is when the ocean's pH levels drop which wreaks havoc in the habitat. On a chemistry level, the ocean’s pH level has dropped by 0.11 units. The way the ocean acidity is measured is similar to the Richter scale means that hydrogen molecules have increased by 30% percent over time.
Animals have little time to adjust to this sudden change and struggle to adapt. This is putting a strain on the different populations. To elaborate, respiration, reproduction, and calcification are some processes that are heavily impacted by the pH level of the ocean. To elaborate, some species that would be affected would be both types of water corals, muscles, and sea urchins which all rely on calcification. Coral reefs formed by calcification can produce habitats for sea life. Acidification can break down already grown parts and can stunt further growth.It was observed in Papua new guinea that the actual shape or build of a coral reef may change.
Instead of thin branches the coral formed into a large boulder shape that will affect the inhabitants of the reefs. Warming water can also cause coral to lose its color and become bleached. Muscles are less able to cling to rocks in acidic water along with a loss of their hardened shell. Oysters are suffering a loss in population in the US Pacific Northwest.
This is due to the massive growth spurt they have so they can feed being unable to occur properly. Seagrass, another habitat, is suffering from pollution and has been observed to grow healthier in acidic waters but this does not negate the loss of pollution. Animal behavior is also affected by this change. For example, prey animals such as clownfish have been recorded unable to hear loud predators.
To conclude, the changes we may see over the next few years will be devastating to different populations and a variety of ecosystems will degrade as well. Harvesting from the ocean will hopefully lessen in order to help these species survive in the wild. A gradual change in acidity in any animals in captivity along with cross-breeding may help animals adapt over time. We are still studying the effects of ocean acidification and will continue looking for options to help marine life evolve to handle this change or reverse it.
