A scientific framework for evaluating coral reef resilience to climate change
A scientific framework for evaluating coral reef resilience to climate change
Date
2016-09
Authors
Barkley, Hannah C.
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DOI
10.1575/1912/8427
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Keywords
Coral reef conservation
Global warming
Global warming
Abstract
The 21𝑠𝑡 century warming and acidification of tropical oceans will impact the structure
and function of coral reef ecosystems. Consequently, conservation efforts are increasingly
focused on identifying and protecting reef communities that demonstrate resilience to these
changes. In this thesis, I develop a scientific framework for identifying climate change
resilience in coral communities and, using Palau’s coral reefs as a case study, demonstrate
the application of this approach. First, I use coral skeletal records to evaluate the sensitivity
of coral communities to episodes of severe thermal stress. This information reveals coral reef
communities that consistently exhibit weak responses to multiple high temperature events.
Second, I evaluate coral reef community structure across a strong, natural pH gradient using
metrics informed by laboratory ocean acidification studies. The coral communities of Palau’s
Rock Island reefs show a level of pH tolerance that is unique amongst reefs studied to date.
Third, I conduct laboratory and field experiments to constrain the pH thresholds of these
resilient corals and investigate potential mechanisms for pH tolerance. Finally, I combine
archipelago-wide coral temperature and pH sensitivity data to construct climate change
resilience indices. My study succeeds in identifying a small number of coral communities
that have the potential to withstand 21𝑠𝑡 century climate change and highlights the spatial
variability in community responses to ocean warming and acidification. Critically, I present
a set of scientific tools and approaches for identifying resilient coral reef communities that
has applicability to coral reefs worldwide.
Description
Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution September 2016
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Citation
Barkley, H. C. (2016). A scientific framework for evaluating coral reef resilience to climate change [Doctoral thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution]. Woods Hole Open Access Server. https://doi.org/10.1575/1912/8427