Australia's natural wonder the Great Barrier Reef is under threat from 'Marine Heatwaves' says CSIRO scientists. This is on top of 'coral bleaching' episodes in 2016/17. According to new research by biological oceanographer Alistair Hobday (below) and his team the warming is being driven by climate change and is creating an increase in the frequency, duration and severity of (MHWs) on not only Australia's natural wonder but other world marine ecosystems. He says the heatwaves are having a severe impact on corals, oysters, other molluscs, abalone, salmon and seagrass. A MHW is defined as a period of warm water that lasts five days or longer, where temperatures are in the top 10 per cent of events typically experienced in that region. They are graded in severity — similar to how cyclones are — with category five being the most intense. "The oceans are really ringing the alarm bells," says Alistair Hobday. They are telling us we've got big problems and those problems are not going to go away." Alistair Hobday with a map showing some of the world's ocean 'heat zones'
Remember 4-5 years ago when all those giant poisonous jellyfish threatened 80% of Japan's coastline? At that time they were contributing this with the loss of coral reefs which enables an adequate food source for much of marine life. I don't know if, or how, Japan solved the problem. So, this isn't just about losing a beautiful ecosystem, but it threatens our entire seafood supply. For western countries, we would just miss it, but for many countries, there would be a great famine and millions would starve.
By last count more than half of all world coral reef ecosystems have been destroyed by the effects of warming waters (climate change). This is not only a devastating loss of marine wildlife who feed off the reefs but also a huge economic loss. Australia’s Great Barrier Reef Marine Park attracts about 1.9 million visits each year, with prime tourist spots stretching along most of the vast Queensland coastline. Reef tourism generates AUD$5.4 billion annually to Australia’s economy and supports 54,000 jobs.
..and girls there is not one bloody thing we can do to stop it..because our politicians are not listening.
Australian scientists have bred a heat-resistant coral that could preserve the country’s iconic Great Barrier Reef for generations to come by restoring areas devastated by mass bleaching. CSIRO's best marine biologists believe by improving coral’s natural heat tolerance they can reduce the impact of reef bleaching during summer marine heatwaves. The team isolated tiny algae that live inside coral tissue and exposed it to increasingly warmer temperatures over four years. Called “directed evolution” the technique assisted the microalgae to adapt and survive in hotter conditions. Once the microalgae were reintroduced into coral larvae, the newly established coral-algal symbiosis became more heat tolerant its original. This may well be the shot in the arm all the world's coral reefs badly need. Stock image of the Great Barrier Reef, and its unique heart-shaped reef. Credit: Grant Faint/Getty Images