Coral growth rate plummets in 30-year comparison

[knocker]

Washington, DC— A team of researchers working on a Carnegie expedition in Australia's Great Barrier Reef has documented that coral growth rates have plummeted 40% since the mid-1970s. The scientists suggest that ocean acidification may be playing an important role in this perilous slowdown.

 

In a quest for historical context on the peril facing coral reefs, the team compared current measurements of the growth rate of a section of Australia's Great Barrier Reef with similar measurements taken more than 30 years ago. Their work is published in Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta.

 

http://www.sciencecodex.com/coral_growth_rate_plummets_in_30year_comparison-141849