Seawater carbonate chemistry and Robustness of Adamussium colbecki shell

• Main Authors: Dell'Acqua, Ombretta, Trębala, Michal, Chiantore, Mariachiara, Hannula, Simo-Pekka
• Format: Dataset
• Language: English
• Published: PANGAEA 2019
• Subjects: Adamussium colbecki; Alkalinity; total; standard deviation; Animalia; Antarctic; Aragonite saturation state; Benthic animals; Benthos; Bicarbonate ion; Bottles or small containers/Aquaria (<20 L); Calcite saturation state; Calculated using seacarb after Nisumaa et al. (2010); Calculated using seacarb after Orr et al. (2018); Carbon; inorganic; dissolved; Carbonate ion; Carbonate system computation flag; Carbon dioxide; Coast and continental shelf; EXP; Experiment; Experiment duration; Fugacity of carbon dioxide (water) at sea surface temperature (wet air); Fugacity of carbon dioxide in seawater; Hardness; Indentation depth; Laboratory experiment; Antarc*; Ocean acidification
• Online Access: https://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.913206; https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.913206

Atmospheric pCO2 has increased since the industrial revolution leading to a lowering of the ocean surface water pH, a phenomenon called ocean acidification (OA). OA is claimed to be a major threat for marine organisms and ecosystems and, particularly, for Polar regions. We explored the impact of OA on the shell mechanical properties of the Antarctic scallop Adamussium colbecki exposed for one month to acidified (pH 7.6) and natural conditions (unmanipulated littoral water), by performing Scanning Electron Microscopy, nanoindentation and Vickers indentation on the scallop shell. No effect of pH could be detected either in crystal deposition or in the mechanical properties. A. colbecki shell was found to be resistant to OA, which suggests this species to be able to face a climate change scenario that may threat the persistence of the endemic Antarctic species. Further investigation should be carried out in order to elucidate the destiny of this key species in light of global change.