Are Coral Reefs Becoming Less

What is productivity?
Productive? Zooxanthellae
Primary productivity is the biological process in which organic material is
synthesised from inorganic compounds such as CO₂ and water (Cullen,2001).
Primary consumers are the organisms whom undertake this process they are Coral Productivity
photosynthetic and able to use the sun’s light to fixate carbon into an organic Coral reefs are one of the most
material which is then a viable source of carbon to other organisms. productive ecosystems on earth,
Threat Effect on Productivity and certainly the most productive
in the marine environment, with
Overfishing Removal of herbivorous fish leads
gross primary productivity of 1-15
to widespread algal overgrowth, g C m -2 day -1. These high levels
smothering corals and reducing of productivity can mainly be
primary productivity of the reef attributed to Zooxanthellae, the
(Valentine and Heck, 2005) symbiotic algae which resides
within polyps of reef building
Destructive Use of dynamite, cyanide and other corals. Zooxanthellae can be Figure 1: Picture of a coral
fishing harmful practices physically destroy polyp and associated
accountable for 50-70% of primary zooxanthellae. Source-
methods coral, reducing reef productivity. production on most reefs. http://www.greencareer.net.a
(Mcmanus et al, 1997) (Douglas, 2009) u/archived-news/whole-coral-
decoded
Coastal run- Run off from agriculture in coastal
off areas causes eutrophication of Figure 2: Picture showing blast fishing Evidence for the Reduction of Coral Reef Productivity
waters around coral reefs reducing and the effect on the reef. Source-
• A study conducted by Anthony et al in 2008
http://rbfdevsite.com/protecting-reefs/
photosynthesis of the reef and provided evidence that increasing CO₂
therefore productivity. (Fabricius, concentration in sea water is reducing the
2010) productivity of coral reefs.
Pollution Many types of pollution greatly • 3 Key coral reef builder species Crustose coralline
impact coral reef communities. algae, Acropora and Porites were dosed with
These include, oil, sewage, plastic, increasing CO₂ concentrations in accordance with
metals, thermal and sedimentation. IPCC projection categories IV (500-720ppm) and VI
To name a few. These kill off corals (1000-1300ppm) and a control normal CO₂
and reduce productivity. (Dubinsky (380ppm)
and Stambler, 1996) • Each concentration was also tested under 2
Bleaching Rising sea water temperatures and temperature conditions. 25-26°C and 28-29°C
Figure 3: Picture showing • Productivity responses were measured as hourly
increased solar irradiance cause the
eutrophication and smothering of rates of photosynthesis minus respiration
symbiotic relationship between coral. Source- M.J.A Vermaji, Carmabi integrated over the day.
polyp and zooxanthellae to break foundation, 2012
• Results showed that increasing CO₂ concentrations
down leading to a drop in decreased productivity overall even though the
photosynthesis and therefore intermediate concentration actually enhanced
productivity. (Brown, 1997) productivity in Acropora, this productivity was
Acidification Rising CO₂ concentrations have greatly reduced in the high concentration
decreased sea water pH which has condition however.
caused a decreased calcification
rate in coral reefs. This shows a
reduction in reef productivity as
carbon fixated by the corals is not
being effectively converted into Figure 4: Picture showing effects of
calcium carbonate. (Kleypas and coral bleaching (pigment loss) source-
http://seaa.rwsentosablog.com/coral-
yates, 2009) bleaching/

Conclusions
• Coral reefs are indeed becoming less productive. This is clear to see due
to the many threats to coral reefs, be it direct anthropogenic destruction
C IV VI C IV VI C IV VI
or as a consequence of climate change.
• Our actions and the pollution we create are breaking down the crucial
symbiotic relationship between polyp and zooxanthellae which is the key Figure 5: Bar charts showing net productivity of 3 coral reef building
component in sustaining a healthy and productive reef. species Crustose coralline algae (B), Acropora (E) and Porites (H) under
different CO₂ and temperature conditions . Source- Anthony et al, 2008
• The main threats to coral productivity are those associated with climate
change, ocean acidification and coral bleaching. These are the main
stressors as they are global and effect coral reefs around the world.
References
• K. R. N. Anthony, D. I. Kline, G. Diaz-Pulido, S. Dove, and O. Hoegh-Guldberg, 2008, Ocean acidification causes bleaching and productivity loss in coral reef builders, PNAS
• B.E Brown, 1997, Coral bleaching: causes and consequences, Coral reefs, volume 16, pages 129-138
• J.J. Cullen, 2001, Primary Production Methods, Encyclopaedia of Ocean Sciences, volume 2, pages 578-584
• A.E Douglas, 2009, The Productivity of Corals, Oceanography, volume 2
• Z. Dubinsky, N. Stambler, 1996, Marine pollution and coral reefs, Global Change Biology, Volume 2, issue 6, pages 511-526
• K.E. Fabricius, 2010, Factors Determining the Resilience of Coral Reefs to Eutrophication: A Review and Conceptual Model, Coral reefs: an ecosystem in transition, pages 493-505
• J.A Kleypas, K.K Yates, Coral Reefs and Ocean Acidification, Oceanography, pages 108-117
• J.W. Mcmanus, JR.R.B. Reyes, C.L. Nanola Jr, 1997, Effects of Some Destructive Fishing Methods on Coral Cover and Potential Rates of Recovery, Environmental management, pages
69-71
• J.F Valentine, K. Heck, 2005, Perspective review of the impacts of overfishing on coral reef food web linkages, Coral Reefs, pages 209-213
• M.J.A Vermaji, 2012, The Current state of Curacao’s coral reefs, Carmabi Foundation
• http://www.greencareer.net.au/archived-news/whole-coral-decoded, coral polyp and zooxanthellae
• http://rbfdevsite.com/protecting-reefs/-, Blast fishing
• http://seaa.rwsentosablog.com/coral-bleaching/, coral bleaching