University of Adelaide research shows that in cases where biodiversity metrics show no change or little change, there may still be reorganisation of ecological communities in our oceans.
“The belief that climate change will alter global marine biodiversity is one of the most widely accepted,” said Professor Ivan Nagelkerken from the University of Adelaide’s Environment Institute and Southern Seas Ecology Laboratories.
“Commonly used biodiversity measures don’t pick up reorganisation of marine communities due to ocean acidification because new species replace species that are lost.
“Little or no biodiversity change is detected when one community of marine species is replaced by another even under significant habitat loss.”
The team looked at research undertaken into how species communities located around undersea volcanic CO2 vents and in laboratory mesocosms respond to changes in climate. They reviewed 58 research studies that examined communities in different types of temperate reefs, coral reefs and seagrass beds, and 23 studies carried out in outdoor experimental environments or laboratories.
Climate change due to human activity has a direct impact on marine species. It alters their abundance, diversity, distribution, feeding patterns, development and breeding, and the relationships between species are affected.
The University of Adelaide’s Professor Sean Connell, who is also from the Environment Institute and Southern Seas Ecology Laboratories, co-authored the study.
“Experiments done in the laboratory are weak in detecting biodiversity change, so natural systems experiencing advanced ocean acidification are emerging as an innovative way of studying biodiversity responses,” he said.
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The study was published in the journal Global Change Biology .
Crispin Savage, The University of Adelaide, 30 September 2022. Press release.
