No Longer Finding Nemo

Marine Life in Hawaii has been depleting for years, but now because of climate change becoming worse it has become a deeper threat to coral reefs and the livelihood of the Hawaiian community. Since Hawaii is on an island a great portion of the community relies on fish and other seafood to maintain their lifestyles. Fish in the ecosystem are very profitable and are significant to Hawaii’s economy and trade, and corals provide about 80% of the Pacific Oceans oxygen.

A New York Times article better explains the significant changes in Hawaii’s ecosystem and how dependent the people living on the island of Hawaii are on the corals and underwater life.CLICK HERE-to view the dangers climate change has on community .This article shows that in order to determine the impact of climate change they look how it has already begun to affect animals, even those outside of the water. For example, it states that “warming waters can trigger the release of a neurotoxin called domoic acid from algae. Shellfish eat the algae and when animals eat the shellfish they get sick and can die.” Algae is created when the water's temperature heats up and is very invasive, meaning it spreads fast. Algae is not an exaggerated problem, and as it becomes greater and takes over more of the ocean it blocks the sun rays which corals use to grow and get energy, photosynthesis. The rising temperatures are causing this very dramatic change in underwater ecosystems and is continuing to spread every second.

Many researchers are tracking Hawai’i coral bleaching using satellite images and a network of sensors that show a significant change in just this year.CLICK HERE: to view satellite images Green on the image means no bleaching, yellow and orange mean some bleaching, and red means extensive bleaching. These images show the danger levels of the corals. I remember hearing about the amazing blue, purple and pink corals; however,  that are no longer that vibrant and now most corals are breaking apart and becoming a white and brown color. Director of the Center for Global Discovery and Conservation Science at Arizona State University, Dr. Gred Asner started, “If you looked at that a month ago, it was just a few yellow dots, and then the orange dots started popping up. And now we have red dots.” This shows the extreme rate climate change is changing the aquatic ecosystems and the danger that it puts marine life in.

As we know climate change poses a great danger to corals which is used as food, habitat, oxygen levels, and numerous others factors, are there any other strides that should be taken, for example Jason DeCaries Taylor Mexico sculptures that stimulate coral growth? Are there technologies that can prevent the bleaching process of the corals? Is climate change the only thing affecting the corals or is it just a major factor? What steps could the community as a whole take, and what steps should each citizens take to improve the aquatic ecosystem?

















Comments