D-Bone
May 1st '06, 10:39 AM
Some corals may beat global warming, say researchers who have found at least one species that can live on even after it has been turned white by overly warm waters.
To survive, most corals depend on algae that lives on them, called zooxanthellae, which die easily during spats of ocean warming. When the algae die, most coral take on a bleached appearance and then die as well.
But tests on one coral species, Montipora capitata, showed that the coral can make due without its algae by gobbling up more zooplankton from sea water. The discovery provides a glimmer of hope that the warming of oceans due to global warming might not cause the complete disappearance of all coral reefs worldwide.
"We've been trying to tackle why some coral recover from bleaching events," said Andrea Grottoli, a coral researcher at Ohio State University. The unusual ability to switch food sources seems to be one of the secrets.
Read More: http://dsc.discovery.com/news/briefs/20060501/coral_pla.html
To survive, most corals depend on algae that lives on them, called zooxanthellae, which die easily during spats of ocean warming. When the algae die, most coral take on a bleached appearance and then die as well.
But tests on one coral species, Montipora capitata, showed that the coral can make due without its algae by gobbling up more zooplankton from sea water. The discovery provides a glimmer of hope that the warming of oceans due to global warming might not cause the complete disappearance of all coral reefs worldwide.
"We've been trying to tackle why some coral recover from bleaching events," said Andrea Grottoli, a coral researcher at Ohio State University. The unusual ability to switch food sources seems to be one of the secrets.
Read More: http://dsc.discovery.com/news/briefs/20060501/coral_pla.html