Scientific Significance Statement
Anthropogenic CO2 is acidifying the surface ocean water, a process called ocean acidification (OA). This process can result in conditions that are corrosive for seashells with more “delicate” calcium carbonate shells. An important debate in OA research centers on the degree of vulnerability of the calcium carbonate shell forming groups. It is widely believed that the vulnerability can be simply inferred from the particular mineral type forming the shells (related to the mineral’s solubility). This idea is widespread and has found its way into policy reports. We argue that the idea is over-simplified and can lead to wrong assessments of vulnerability to OA. Shell dissolution kinetics is not only a function of the mineral type but also of microstructure and organic content. This means that vulnerability assessments in, for example, some models and policy reports have to be revised.
Langer G. & Ziveri P., 2025. Vulnerability to ocean acidification of marine calcifying organisms cannot be predicted from the mineral type in their shells. Limnology and Oceanography Letters 10(4): 448-452. Article.
