|
Research
 Coastal
processes
Conservation
& biodiversity
- Biodiversity
assessment
-
Environmental change
and impacts
- Status
and trends
Marine
biotechnology
Research links
 Across
the top
AIMS
Western Australia
AIMS-IBM-KEPCO-UOG
AIMS
scientists CV's
ARNAT
AUSCORE
Research
publications
Shrimpmap
TROPICS
WetPC
technologies
Resources
ProjectNET
for schools
Links
to relevant sites
Research
plan 2007-11
|
Conservation and
biodiversity
Climate change
"Researching
for a future without surprises"
Global climate change is a
reality.
|
As we
move into a warmer world this team examines the short
and long-term impacts of climate change on coral reefs
and mangroves.
Global
warming is one of the greatest threats to the
long-term future of the Great Barrier Reef,
particularly in combination with other natural and
human-induced stresses on these fragile ecosystems.
The
Climate Change team monitors current changes in the
physical environment of the GBR, and experimentally
determines the effects of environmental change on
corals and mangroves.
|
"Climate expertise":
AIMS is a world leader in extracting
climate records from corals
|
To understand the
present and plan for the future, it helps if we understand the
past. This team analyses coral skeleton which archive past
environmental changes.
|
The team is
providing a future without surprises, helping to better manage
Australia’s natural resources and inform both the National
Greenhouse Strategy and the international Inter-Governmental Panel
on Climate Change.
Can reef-building
corals adapt or
acclimate to these rapid climate changes?
|
Unusually
warm water temperatures in the summers of 1998 and 2002
resulted in bleaching of corals on the GBR. There has been
an increased frequency of such mass bleaching events
worldwide since the mid-1970s.
This
increased frequency has been linked to global warming and
current predictions suggest tropical ocean waters may be 1-3oC
warmer than now by the end of this century AIMS scientists
measure the upper thermal limits at which coral bleach, die,
or recover.
AIMS is using
this research to work out how the Great Barrier Reef will
cope with future heat waves. |
 |
|
 |
Sea
surface temperature map
of the Great Barrier Reef.
(Click
here for a larger view)
 Coral colonies
affected by
rapid temperature change.
|
Unlocking
climate archives in coral
| Observational
records of climate and environmental change on the GBR only
cover a relatively short time period. This team turns to the
past looking at records contained in coral skeletons to
reconstruct climate, and coral responses to past
environmental variations over the past several centuries.
Scientists learn everything from when floodwaters entered
reef environments, to changes in coral growth rates and past
environmental stresses on corals. Rainfall and river flow in
Queensland is highly seasonal and very variable from
year-to-year. Gauged river flow records extend back over
several decades.
AIMS’
scientists are reconstructing river flows back to the 17th
century which gives natural resource managers better
information on the frequency of extreme events. |
AIMS
has the most extensive
collection of long coral cores in the
world, the longest record from a
living coral dating back to 1300 AD.
|
Scientists are also
using the historical archives contained in coral skeletons to
determine how coral growth may change after coral bleaching
events.
Window into the
past
Using large coral
colonies exposed during excavation for the Nelly Bay Harbour
redevelopment on Magnetic Island AIMS scientists are able to
reconstruct a snapshot of mid-Holocene (~ 6,000 years ago) coral
growth, river run-off and other climatic parameters in the
vicinity of Townsville.. Researchers are comparing recent climate
conditions with the past and examining how corals have responded
to change.
|
Weather watch
The Team monitors current changes in
the oceanic and atmospheric environment of the GBR both to detect
change and to link ecological processes with environmental
conditions.
Automatic weather stations provide near real-time
observations of winds, temperatures and light levels on the reef.
Water
temperatures are measured at over 45 reef locations and help
determine coral bleaching thresholds. Measurements of
currents and tides tell us about water movement and can help
explain the patchiness of coral bleaching events.
Reef-wide
pictures of water temperatures on the GBR are routinely
obtained from satellites. Data from these observation
systems are used during summer seasons to alert the Great
Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority when there is a risk of
coral bleaching.
|
Myrmidon
Reef remote weather station.
|
Davies
Reef remote weather station.
|
Two
of AIMS' remote weather stations on the Great Barrier Reef.
|
Chilling Climate facts
- Global temperatures have warmed
~ 0.6oC since observations began in the late
19th century
- The 10 warmest years globally
all occurred in the 1990s and 2000s and the 1990s was
probably the warmest decade in the past 1,000 years
- Average water temperatures of
the GBR have warmed by ~0.4oC between the end
of the 19th and end of the 20th
century
- Many corals are living only 1-2oC
below their upper thermal threshold
- Unusually warm water
temperatures in the summers of 1998 and 2003 caused mass
bleaching of corals on the GBR
- "most of the observed
warming over the last 50 years is likely to have been
due to the increase in greenhouse gas
concentrations" (IPCC)
|
Our Team
The Climate Change
team specializes in coral reef and mangrove ecology, climatology,
oceanography, and remote sensing. Scientists conduct their work in
the field, in the lab, in controlled aquarium facilities, and in
mangrove shade houses. Researchers use X-rays to examine growth
histories from coral cores, manipulate the environment of
mangroves, observe the responses of corals transplanted between
reefs, deploy instruments measuring ocean currents and
temperatures and conduct controlled coral bleaching experiments.
Coral Bleaching
| Coral
Bleaching experts are examining how much heat corals can
tolerate, setting upper thermal limits to when corals may
bleach and or die. The scientists look at environmental data
records to see what environmental conditions trigger
bleaching. Scientists are also examining ocean dynamics to
determine why coral bleaching is so patchy. The ability of
corals to adapt or acclimate to a warmer environment is also
being probed. Research of this nature will help identify
areas more or less susceptible to coral bleaching. This
research is vital to understanding the impact of global
warming on coral reefs worldwide. |
Death
by degrees.
|
Mangrove Studies
Mangroves act as a
vital buffer between land and sea and are nursery grounds for fish
and other marine species. AIMS researchers are investigating how
rapidly mangroves can respond to environmental change and how they
will cope with the predicted rise in sea level (10-80 cm by the
end of this century) and to increasing levels of atmospheric
carbon dioxide. This project is crucial for successful management
of these vital ecosystems, which are also increasingly threatened
by coastal development.
World leaders
AIMS has been
enlisted by an environmental company in Saudi Arabia to study the
impact of the 1991Gulf War on corals off the Saudi Arabian coast.
The researchers were able to date coral core samples and analyse
them for hydrocarbons. They assessed the impact of oil fires and
spills on coral reefs.
Contact
Dr
Janice Lough,
Team Leader
Telephone: (07) 4753 4248
Facsimile: (07) 4772 5852
Email: j.lough@aims.gov.au
Cassie Tobin
November 11, 2004
|
|
