Cementing coral reefs
Calcification rates of crustose coralline algae
#The Project
Just as a brick building would collapse without any mortar, so too would coral reefs without their ‘cement’.
Crustose coralline algae, or CCA, is an important part of what stabilises reef structures in changing conditions. To determine just how rising temperatures and ocean acidification affect CCA, researchers have deployed more than 144 'stations’ across 18 reefs. Designed from concrete blocks covered in settlement tiles, these inventive stations are monitoring how CCA calcifies and grows under differing environments.
#What are coralline algae?
Pink in colour
Have a CaCO3 skeleton
They are diverse (and beautiful!)
Provide beneficial roles on the reef
Two key roles:
they contribute significantly to reef calcification and cementation
they induce larval settlement of many benthic organisms.
#Project goals
METHOD of developing a way to measure coralline algae calcification
MEASUREMENTS of coralline algae calcification along the Great Barrier Reef
MONITOR the Great Barrier Reef into the future to track impacts of climate change on the reef
Locations of the stations
#Project process
Designing the station
Building the stations
Sorting corallines
Setting in epoxy
Deploying blocks
Weigh and measure
Sort and dry
Pack and ship back to lab
#Researchers
Dr Emma Kennedy
Reef Expert
Dr Guillermo Diaz-Pulido
Reef Expert
