The Effects of Thermal Stress on Coral Reefs

Stephanie Finley

0549565

Dr. Carney

BIOL-3212

April 12, 2016

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 The Effects of Thermal Stress on Coral Reefs

Introduction

Coral reefs are undoubtedly one of the most vital ecosystems on the planet. Their

significance stems from the highly diverse range of organisms contained within them that make

up as much as one-quarter to one-third of all marine organisms. Humans rely on these species for

a variety of services such as pharmaceuticals, the fishing industry, and even tourism

(Bellantuono et al., 2011). The importance of coral reefs has been a popular interest of study

recently as many reefs across the globe are facing high risks of stress leading to their own

destruction. The decline of coral reefs is vastly due to the assortment of environmental stressors

acting on them, with the most significant being thermal stress (Fujise et al., 2014). Thermal

stress is caused by the continuous increase in the earth’s temperature which is in turn effecting

the temperature of the oceans. Much of the thermal stress in oceans is caused by anthropogenic

affects due to the carelessness of humans. The rising ocean temperatures leads to numerous

problems for coral reefs as it compromises the ability of the reef to support certain organisms

that are essential to the reef’s survival. Coral reefs have a mutualistic relationship with a group of

organisms called zooxanthellae that they rely on to provide their energy to survive. However,

thermal stress is complicating the relationship between the reefs and the zooxanthellae. The

zooxanthellae tend to become damaged or may even leave a reef when there is thermal stress

present which is causing severe decline in coral reefs across the globe. Without the

zooxanthellae, the reefs face problems such as lack of calcification, bleaching, and disease

outbreaks. Over the years reefs have been attempting to combat these stresses through a variety

of strategies but this is simply not enough to save them. Humans must do their part in order to

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help reduce thermal stress and save the reefs which we, and so many other organisms, depend

on.

Discussion

Coral reefs rely on a group of protozoans with which they have a mutualistic relationship

in order to survive and support further life. Zooxanthellae is a dinoflagellate micro-algae (genus

Symbiodinium) which is symbiotic with many reef building, scleractinian corals and the

invertebrates that live within the reefs (Fujise et al., 2014). Some invertebrates that are often

hosts to zooxanthellae within their endodermal tissues include molluscs, sea anemones, jellyfish,

flatworms, and sponges (Rupert et al., 2004). The relationship between the dinoflagellates and

their hosts, whether it be the coral or another invertebrate, is mutualistic meaning both organisms

benefit from it. The dinoflagellates provide their host with the energy necessary for processes

such as growth, calcification, metabolization, and reproduction through photosynthetic actions.

In return, the dinoflagellate receives carbon dioxide, nutrients, and an increased interaction with

the sun by positioning itself on its’ host (Rupert et al., 2004). The zooxanthellae is

photosynthetic and contains pigments such chlorophylls, peridinin, and diadinoxanthin which

give the algae its characteristic green, yellow, or brown colouring (Weis, 2010). However,

recently there has been significant coral bleaching across the globe where the corals lose their

pigment and become white due to the loss of the symbionts from the reef. This leads to

significant damage to the reefs as the zooxanthellae is crucial in providing around sixty to

eighty-five percent of the reefs energy required for processes previously stated (Fujise et al.,

2014). Without the dinoflagellates present to assist the coral, the reef is no longer able to support

the many invertebrates and vertebrates that inhabit it thus further reducing the diversity of the

reefs.

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 There are a variety of reasons for the recent escalation in coral bleaching such as

increased light intensity, increased salinity stress, and disease, but the most significant factor

seems to be thermal stress (Fujise et al., 2014). Thermal stress occurs when the temperature of

the water surrounding a reef increases significantly from the average temperature. This increase

in temperature naturally occurs occasionally, such as during El Niño years, but it is most often

caused by climate change brought on by anthropogenic effects (McClanahan et al., 2011).

Humans have caused a great deal of changes and stress to the environment through their use of

fossil fuels, garbage pollution, overfishing, and overall carelessness. The high amounts of

chemicals and waste being pumped into water bodies across the globe have had detrimental

effects to the organisms that call these waters home. The pollution is of course not only restricted

to the water, but is also contaminating the air and destroying the ozone layer, which is known as

the greenhouse effect. With the ozone layer continuously decreasing in size, more of the sun’s

energy is able to transmit down to the earth and increase the air and water temperatures up past

what they should ideally be to properly support life (Singh and Purohit, 2014). It is also

estimated that about one quarter of the carbon dioxides humans are releasing into the atmosphere

is absorbed by the oceans which further contributes to the warming (Donner, 2009). This

warming of the oceans puts stress on the coral reefs as the increased temperatures cause

photosynthetic damage to the zooxanthellae the reefs rely on to provide their energy. As more

and more zooxanthellae either become damaged or expel themselves from the reef, the less

energy the reef has to carry out essential life processes. Without this energy from the symbiotic

dinoflagellates, the reef is not able to calcify which is necessary for reef growth and support of

other reef-dwelling organisms (Carricart-Ganivet et al., 2012).

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 Thermal stress is persistently increasing across the globe as ocean temperatures continue

to rise. A change in temperature of something even as small as one or two degrees above average

can severely impact the reef’s natural symbiotic relationships essential to the growth of the reef

(Bellantuono et al., 2011). Coral reefs often maintain themselves at slightly below their natural

maximum temperature limits and even this minor alteration can be damaging (Spillman et al.,

2011). The reef and the organisms within it are accustomed to a certain temperature, which

varies from reef to reef but is usually just below thirty degrees (Carricart-Ganivet et al., 2012),

and an increase can easily throw the system off balance. It is suggested that once the water

surrounding a reef reaches thirty degrees or higher, the reef is not capable of correctly processing

the Symbiodinium cells within it, and the cells it does process are likely photosynthetically

damaged due to the thermal stress placed on them (Fujise et al., 2014). The reef cannot survive

off of these damaged cells alone that lack the energy the reef requires and thus it begins to

deteriorate.

Thermal stress on the coral reefs does not only cause deterioration, but it can also cause

disease outbreaks. Many studies have been done to prove the correlation between thermal stress

and coral reef diseases and the findings were all similar: higher water temperatures, particularly

in the summer seasons, are linked to the spread of diseases in the corals (Bruno et al., 2007). The

warmer temperatures allow for the diseases to spread quicker and easier, and the lack of energy

the reef has makes it more susceptible to these diseases. Since corals are the heart of a reef, the

onset of diseases in corals can damage the habitat-forming and key-consumer species of a reef

which in turn affects all species that depend on it (Bruno et al., 2007). Essentially, once the coral

acquires a disease, it is often passed on to the plants and animals living within the reef which can

lead to mass destruction and a severe decline in biodiversity.

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 As levels of thermal stress on coral reefs over the years has been continuously increasing,

the reefs have begun to find new ways to adapt and adjust to the stress in order to reduce

deterioration. Normally as water temperatures rise, the zooxanthellae cells begin to degrade due

to damage from increased photosynthesis rates. Once a reef’s water reaches a temperature of

thirty degrees or above, the majority of the cells the reefs are taking in are damaged and can no

longer provide the energy required for essential life processes in the reef. The corals are

absorbing, digesting, and expelling the Symbiodinium cells more actively under stressed

conditions to attempt to cope with the stress. However, the corals have adjusted this routine by

not digesting the majority of the cells in order to reduce accumulation of damaged cells (Fujise et

al., 2014). This is known as acclimatization which means the reef is responding to the gradual

changes in its’ surrounding environment and adapting accordingly in order to resist stress and

survive. This strategy is successful if the coral is living under moderate, prolonged thermal stress

as the reef is still able to acquire some energy to allow for calcification without causing severe

damage. However, this situation is not ideal and the reef will most likely eventually become

bleached and deteriorate, it just simply will take longer through this acclimatized process.

(Carricart-Ganivet et al., 2012). Although the reef is attempting to repair itself and reduce

damage, the presence of the undigested zooxanthellae indicates a reef is not healthy (Eakin et al.,

2010). One experiment was conducted in 1988 to 1990 to prove this natural acclimatization in

the reefs. It was conducted at a reef near a power plant in Taiwan which puts heavy thermal

stress on the corals. In 1988, the corals became entirely bleached after only two days of being

exposed to thirty-three degree waters but two years later in 1990, it took corals from the same

area six days to only begin showing signs of bleaching (Bellantuono et al., 2011). This natural

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phenomenon the corals have adapted to perform is proof that many organisms are capable of

reacting to their surroundings and adjusting to them accordingly.

Another suggested possible method of adaptation by coral reefs to thermal stress is the

use of microbial bacteria. During times of thermal stress, it is thought that coral reefs may

rapidly acquire and form relationships with symbiotic microbials that are heat-resistant

(Bellantuono et al., 2011). The corals will use these metabolically active bacteria that live on the

reef and in the tissues of organisms within it to aid in adjusting to environmental changes by

reducing the effects of thermal stress.

It is no secret that coral bleaching is one of the most obvious and shocking signs of global

warming and the troubles the earth is facing. In fact, coral bleaching is said to be one of the

fastest progressing impacts of climate change ahead of glacial melting, loss of Amazonian

rainforests, reduction of agriculture, and spread of tropical diseases (Donner, 2009). Since 1950

it is predicted that nearly nineteen percent of coral reefs around the world have been destroyed

(Fujise et al. 2014) and that number is only going to continue to increase if humans do not

change their ways. The thermal stress placed on the reefs is estimated to have been up to ninety

percent caused by anthropogenic effects (Donner, 2009), meaning it is something that can be

reduced greatly if the human race is willing to revolutionize the way they treat the earth. If no

changes are made and the thermal stress on corals continues to worsen, reefs could potentially be

facing water temperature increases by as high as two to four degrees in the next one-hundred

years (Bellantuono et al., 2011). This escalation in temperature will undeniably place a great deal

of stress on the reefs that they may not be able to combat even with strong attempts to

acclimatize. Once a reef has begun the bleaching process and started to degrade, it is very

difficult for it to stop the damage and recover itself (Eakin et al., 2005).

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 Currently there are a variety of different programs that have been developed to assist in

monitoring and predicting reef bleaching rates due to thermal stress. Two of the most successful

programs are Degree Heating Weeks (DHW) and Coral HotSpots which were created by the

National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Coral Reef Watch program

(Spillman et al., 2011). These programs were designed to compare actual measured temperatures

with predicted temperatures for certain times throughout the year. They can also map out satellite

images of thermal stress levels across various reefs. The data from these programs can be used

to spread awareness of areas that are under high risk of bleaching and also to attempt to monitor

them to attempt to reduce any further stress placed on said areas and to protect reefs nearby

(Eakin et al., 2010). Although these programs are very beneficial in locating and calculating

thermal stress levels and amount of bleaching on coral reefs, they do not contribute much to

stabilizing or even reducing the stress levels.

Conclusion

Overall it is extremely clear that thermal stress is a highly prevalent factor in the current

decline of coral reefs across the globe. Currently coral reefs only cover approximately 0.2

percent of the ocean’s surface (Fujise et al., 2014) but at the current rate of bleaching and

degradation, reefs may disappear altogether sooner than expected. Since thermal stress is the

most influential factor contributing towards coral bleaching, it would be the most beneficial to

reduce as it would have the greatest impact in saving coral reefs. The less thermal stress present

in the oceans, the better the relationship between the reefs and their symbiotic zooxanthellae. As

this relationship is strengthened, the coral will be provided with more of the energy necessary to

calcify and reproduce itself making for healthier reefs. To assist in ensuring this relationship is

not lost indefinitely, thermal stress placed on reefs must be lowered by reducing greenhouse gas

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emissions and other pollutions that are harming the atmosphere. Humans must realize the

harmful effects they are having on the environment and how it will impact them. Actions must

quickly be taken in order to stop coral bleaching before it is irreparable and the consequences of

a severe decline in ocean biodiversity becomes detrimental to society and the planet.

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