earthstory:Catastrophe strikes for a second year in a rowAustralia’s Great Barrier Reef is one of th
earthstory:Catastrophe strikes for a second year in a rowAustralia’s Great Barrier Reef is one of the world’s greatest natural wonders, and followers of this page will already know that its unique ecosystem is under threat from multiple assaults, including ocean acidification and mining activities, but the worst danger of all is bleaching. When the waters are too warm, the cnidarian polyps that build the calcium carbonate skeleton expel the symbiotic algae that feed them in return for shelter, and starve to death. Last year saw the world’s worst ever global coral bleaching event with El Nino bringing record ocean temperatures in the Pacific and Indian oceans (see links at end). Some 93 percent of the Great Barrier Reef was affected, and an estimated 22% died. While scientists were hoping for a respite to allow the ecosystem a chance at recovery, events seem to be taking a different turn, much less desirable. Keep reading -- source link