Galápagos coral reef persistence after ENSO warming across an acidification gradient

• Main Authors: Manzello, Derek P, Enochs, I C, Bruckner, Andrew, Renaud, Philip G, Kolodziej, Graham, Budd, David A, Carlton, R, Glynn, Peter W
• Format: Dataset
• Language: English
• Published: PANGAEA 2014
• Subjects: Alkalinity; total; Aragonite saturation state; Benthos; Bicarbonate ion; Biomass/Abundance/Elemental composition; Calcification/Dissolution; Calcification rate; standard error; Calcite saturation state; Calculated using CO2SYS; Calculated using seacarb after Nisumaa et al. (2010); Carbon; inorganic; dissolved; Carbonate ion; Carbonate system computation flag; Carbon dioxide; Coast and continental shelf; Coulometric titration; Date/time end; Date/time start; Density; DEPTH; water; Entire community; Extension rate; Field observation; Fugacity of carbon dioxide (water) at sea surface temperature (wet air); Growth/Morphology; OA-ICC; Ocean Acidification International Coordination Centre; Partial pressure of carbon dioxide (water) at sea surface temperature (wet air); pH; Phosphorus/Calcium ratio; Potentiometric titration; Replicates; Rocky-shore community; Salinity; Site; Ocean acidification
• Online Access: https://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.847762; https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.847762

Anthropogenic CO2 is causing warming and ocean acidification. Coral reefs are being severely impacted, yet confusion lingers regarding how reefs will respond to these stressors over this century. Since the 1982-1983 El Niño-Southern Oscillation warming event, the persistence of reefs around the Galápagos Islands has differed across an acidification gradient. Reefs disappeared where pH<8.0 and aragonite saturation state (Omega arag)<=3 and have not recovered, whereas one reef has persisted where pH>8.0 and Omega arag>3. Where upwelling is greatest, calcification by massive Porites is higher than predicted by a published relationship with temperature despite high CO2, possibly due to elevated nutrients. However, skeletal P/Ca, a proxy for phosphate exposure, negatively correlates with density (R=-0.822, p<0.0001). We propose that elevated nutrients have the potential to exacerbate acidification by depressing coral skeletal densities and further increasing bioerosion already accelerated by low pH.