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Ocean Acidification

Jumanah Amoudi

College Preparation Program

English 036, 3002

March 3, 2022

Source Summarize 1&2

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Gattuso, J. P., & Hansson, L. (2011). Ocean Acidification. Oxford University Press.

https://shorturl.at/bpuD4
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Summary: species in threat of ocean acidification have four ways to survive. To begin,

intergenerational migration may be possible, but other environmental constraints, such as

water temperatures, would limit this option. Secondly and thirdly, organism adaptation

and acclimatization. Acclimatization, on the one hand, causes the same organism to adapt

to its surroundings, but it might alter living energy. Adaptation, on the other hand, is the

generations-long process of learning to live in a new environment. At the very least,

having a long period of time with genetically tolerant kinds might allow organisms to

adapt. Furthermore, due to some species’ incapacity to adapt to the projected rapid

growth of ocean acidification, a large number of species with long generation times and

tiny population sizes are in danger of extinction. Adaptation potential is greatest in

animals with short generation cycles and large populations.

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Adelsman, H. (2012). Ocean Acidification: From Knowledge to Action, Washington State’s

Strategic Response (L. Whitely Binder, Ed.).

https://apps.ecology.wa.gov/publications/publications/1201015.pdf

Summary: Carbon dioxide and pH affect a variety of biological functions, including

photosynthesis, growth, breathing, recruitment, reproduction, and behavior. Acidification

has the potential to harm a wide spectrum of organisms. Acid is added as the alkalinity of

the water drops, affecting marine life. It has an effect on any calcifying species

(organisms that use carbonate ions to form their shells and skeletons) by reducing the

number of carbonate ions required for Calcifies to create, develop, and retain their shells,

skeletons, as well as other vital body parts, resulting in slower growth and higher death

rates. Shell corrosion can also occur when changes in the calcium formation of calcite

and aragonite cause the water to become acidic, leading the shell to corrode.
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Fischetti, M. (2012, September 27). Ocean Acidification Can Mess with a Fish’s Mind. Scientific

American. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/ocean-acidification-can-m/

Summary: Increased water acidity has caused significant changes in marine behavior.

When high carbon dioxide levels coincide with GABA, a neurotransmitter that modulates

activity in practically all animals' brains and nervous systems, creatures' behaviors

change. Changes like these can be noticed in little clownfish. They may be located far

from home, which increases the likelihood of predation. It also robs them of the ability to

detect danger. Furthermore, due to the high CO2 content, Chilean abalones were slow to

correct themselves, and others did not do so after being attacked by a predator. They went

in the incorrect directions trying to avoid predators, and some even went in the direction

of the predator. Finally, when confronted with a prospective predator, Hermit crabs took

significantly longer than usual to retreat into their shells.

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Smithsonian Ocean. (2019, June 20). Ocean Acidification.

https://ocean.si.edu/ocean-life/invertebrates/ocean-acidification

Summary: Acidification may stifle coral growth by corroding pre-existing skeletons and

limiting the formation of new ones, leaving reefs thinner and more vulnerable to eroding.

Storm surges, as well as organisms that burrow into or devour reefs, will promote this

erosion. According to a new study, by 2080, ocean conditions will be so corrosive that

even healthy coral reefs will degrade faster than they can recover. for instance, while

larvae were still in plankton acidic water didn’t hurt their development. However, larvae

in acidic water had more trouble finding a good place to settle, preventing them from

reaching adulthood. Larvae did not suffer any harm while still in plankton acidic water,

for example. On the other hand, it took longer to settle down, keeping them from

reaching adulthood. In addition, the common types of coral found in reefs will change

throughout the next century. Big boulder colonies have taken over on reefs in Papua New

Guinea that are influenced by natural carbon dioxide leaks, while delicately branching

species have vanished, perhaps because their thin branches are more prone to dissolving.