Nutrient-supplying ocean currents modulate coral bleaching susceptibility.
Sci Adv
; 6(34)2020 08.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-32937375
ABSTRACT
With predictions that mass coral bleaching will occur annually within this century, conservation efforts must focus their limited resources based on an accurate understanding of the drivers of bleaching. Here, we provide spatial and temporal evidence that excess nutrients exacerbate the detrimental effects of heat stress to spark mass coral bleaching in the Red Sea. Exploiting this region's unique oceanographic regime, where nutrients and heat stress vary independently, we demonstrate that the world's third largest coral reef system historically suffered from severe mass bleaching only when exposed to both unusually high temperature and nutrients. Incorporating nutrient-supplying ocean currents and their variability into coral bleaching forecasts will be critical for effectively guiding efforts to safeguard the reefs most likely to persist in the Anthropocene.
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1
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Tipo de estudo:
Prognostic_studies
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2020
Tipo de documento:
Article