Elevated pCO2 affects tissue biomass composition, but not calcification, in a reef coral under two light regimes
Ocean acidification (OA) is predicted to reduce reef coral calcification rates and threaten the long-term growth of coral reefs under climate change. Reduced coral growth at elevated pCO2 may be buffered by sufficiently high irradiances; however, the interactive effects of OA and irradiance on other...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:2e48b8e4c0894c9483afe8400f671ea2 2023-05-15T17:50:49+02:00 Elevated pCO2 affects tissue biomass composition, but not calcification, in a reef coral under two light regimes C. B. Wall R. A. B. Mason W. R. Ellis R. Cunning R. D. Gates 2017-01-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.170683 https://doaj.org/article/2e48b8e4c0894c9483afe8400f671ea2 EN eng The Royal Society https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsos.170683 https://doaj.org/toc/2054-5703 2054-5703 doi:10.1098/rsos.170683 https://doaj.org/article/2e48b8e4c0894c9483afe8400f671ea2 Royal Society Open Science, Vol 4, Iss 11 (2017) ocean acidification irradiance scleractinian biomass energy reserves Science Q article 2017 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.170683 2022-12-31T04:18:23Z Ocean acidification (OA) is predicted to reduce reef coral calcification rates and threaten the long-term growth of coral reefs under climate change. Reduced coral growth at elevated pCO2 may be buffered by sufficiently high irradiances; however, the interactive effects of OA and irradiance on other fundamental aspects of coral physiology, such as the composition and energetics of coral biomass, remain largely unexplored. This study tested the effects of two light treatments (7.5 versus 15.7 mol photons m−2 d−1) at ambient or elevated pCO2 (435 versus 957 µatm) on calcification, photopigment and symbiont densities, biomass reserves (lipids, carbohydrates, proteins), and biomass energy content (kJ) of the reef coral Pocillopora acuta from Kāne‘ohe Bay, Hawai‘i. While pCO2 and light had no effect on either area- or biomass-normalized calcification, tissue lipids gdw−1 and kJ gdw−1 were reduced 15% and 14% at high pCO2, and carbohydrate content increased 15% under high light. The combination of high light and high pCO2 reduced protein biomass (per unit area) by approximately 20%. Thus, under ecologically relevant irradiances, P. acuta in Kāne‘ohe Bay does not exhibit OA-driven reductions in calcification reported for other corals; however, reductions in tissue lipids, energy content and protein biomass suggest OA induced an energetic deficit and compensatory catabolism of tissue biomass. The null effects of OA on calcification at two irradiances support a growing body of work concluding some reef corals may be able to employ compensatory physiological mechanisms that maintain present-day levels of calcification under OA. However, negative effects of OA on P. acuta biomass composition and energy content may impact the long-term performance and scope for growth of this species in a high pCO2 world. Article in Journal/Newspaper Ocean acidification Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Royal Society Open Science 4 11 170683 |
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Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
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topic |
ocean acidification irradiance scleractinian biomass energy reserves Science Q |
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ocean acidification irradiance scleractinian biomass energy reserves Science Q C. B. Wall R. A. B. Mason W. R. Ellis R. Cunning R. D. Gates Elevated pCO2 affects tissue biomass composition, but not calcification, in a reef coral under two light regimes |
topic_facet |
ocean acidification irradiance scleractinian biomass energy reserves Science Q |
description |
Ocean acidification (OA) is predicted to reduce reef coral calcification rates and threaten the long-term growth of coral reefs under climate change. Reduced coral growth at elevated pCO2 may be buffered by sufficiently high irradiances; however, the interactive effects of OA and irradiance on other fundamental aspects of coral physiology, such as the composition and energetics of coral biomass, remain largely unexplored. This study tested the effects of two light treatments (7.5 versus 15.7 mol photons m−2 d−1) at ambient or elevated pCO2 (435 versus 957 µatm) on calcification, photopigment and symbiont densities, biomass reserves (lipids, carbohydrates, proteins), and biomass energy content (kJ) of the reef coral Pocillopora acuta from Kāne‘ohe Bay, Hawai‘i. While pCO2 and light had no effect on either area- or biomass-normalized calcification, tissue lipids gdw−1 and kJ gdw−1 were reduced 15% and 14% at high pCO2, and carbohydrate content increased 15% under high light. The combination of high light and high pCO2 reduced protein biomass (per unit area) by approximately 20%. Thus, under ecologically relevant irradiances, P. acuta in Kāne‘ohe Bay does not exhibit OA-driven reductions in calcification reported for other corals; however, reductions in tissue lipids, energy content and protein biomass suggest OA induced an energetic deficit and compensatory catabolism of tissue biomass. The null effects of OA on calcification at two irradiances support a growing body of work concluding some reef corals may be able to employ compensatory physiological mechanisms that maintain present-day levels of calcification under OA. However, negative effects of OA on P. acuta biomass composition and energy content may impact the long-term performance and scope for growth of this species in a high pCO2 world. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
C. B. Wall R. A. B. Mason W. R. Ellis R. Cunning R. D. Gates |
author_facet |
C. B. Wall R. A. B. Mason W. R. Ellis R. Cunning R. D. Gates |
author_sort |
C. B. Wall |
title |
Elevated pCO2 affects tissue biomass composition, but not calcification, in a reef coral under two light regimes |
title_short |
Elevated pCO2 affects tissue biomass composition, but not calcification, in a reef coral under two light regimes |
title_full |
Elevated pCO2 affects tissue biomass composition, but not calcification, in a reef coral under two light regimes |
title_fullStr |
Elevated pCO2 affects tissue biomass composition, but not calcification, in a reef coral under two light regimes |
title_full_unstemmed |
Elevated pCO2 affects tissue biomass composition, but not calcification, in a reef coral under two light regimes |
title_sort |
elevated pco2 affects tissue biomass composition, but not calcification, in a reef coral under two light regimes |
publisher |
The Royal Society |
publishDate |
2017 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.170683 https://doaj.org/article/2e48b8e4c0894c9483afe8400f671ea2 |
genre |
Ocean acidification |
genre_facet |
Ocean acidification |
op_source |
Royal Society Open Science, Vol 4, Iss 11 (2017) |
op_relation |
https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsos.170683 https://doaj.org/toc/2054-5703 2054-5703 doi:10.1098/rsos.170683 https://doaj.org/article/2e48b8e4c0894c9483afe8400f671ea2 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.170683 |
container_title |
Royal Society Open Science |
container_volume |
4 |
container_issue |
11 |
container_start_page |
170683 |
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1766157718673948672 |