scholarly journals Assessing anthropogenic noise impacts and relevant soundscape cues for marine invertebrates: leveraging squid and coral reefs as model systems

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Ian T. Jones
Keyword(s):  
Coral Reef ◽  
Coral Reefs ◽  
Particle Motion ◽  
Marine Invertebrates ◽  
Model Systems ◽  
Acoustic Properties ◽  
Offshore Wind ◽  
Anthropogenic Noise ◽  
Marine Animal ◽  
Noise Impacts

Sound is utilized by marine animal taxa for many ecologically important functions, and these taxa are vulnerable to adverse effects of anthropogenic noise on hearing and behavior. However, little is known about marine invertebrates’ responses to anthropogenic noise, and the ambient environmental sounds (“soundscapes”) they detect and respond to. Most acoustic studies report sound pressure (detected by mammals and some fish), but few report particle motion, the back-and-forth vibratory component of sound detected by marine invertebrates. I investigated invertebrate use of and response to sounds in two facets: 1) behavioral responses of longfin squid, Doryteuthis pealeii to anthropogenic noise, and 2) particle motion of coral reef soundscapes in the U.S. Virgin Islands. In laboratory-based experiments I exposed D. pealeii to construction noise originally recorded from an offshore wind farm. I found significant increases in squids’ alarm responses and in failed prey capture attempts during noise. Conversely, noise exposure had no significant effects on reproductive behaviors of groups of D. pealeii, indicating high motivation of these squid to reproduce during this stressor. Collectively, these experiments revealed the importance of considering behavioral context in studies and regulatory decisions regarding invertebrates’ susceptibility to anthropogenic noise impacts. In studying coral reef soundscapes, I reported particle motion trends over several months for coral reefs varying in habitat quality, including coral cover and fish abundance. I found acoustic properties over which particle motion closely scaled with pressure, and others over which it did not. I compared soundscape data with particle motion hearing thresholds, and found that invertebrates may only detect high amplitude and low frequency transient sound cues on reefs, such as those produced by fishes. My research bring new insights on natural and anthropogenic sound cues detectable by marine invertebrates, and how and when invertebrates will be vulnerable to anthropogenic noise pollution.

Cultivating ‘Response-ability’: Curating Coral in Recent Exhibitions

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 182-205
Author(s):  
Marion Endt-Jones
Keyword(s):  
Coral Reef ◽  
Natural History ◽  
Coral Reefs ◽  
Marine Invertebrates ◽  
Natural World ◽  
Affective Responses ◽  
Collaborative Cross ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Natural Characteristics ◽  
Sense Of Wonder

This article explores the reasons for the recent surge of interest in exhibitions and displays featuring corals and coral reefs, as well as the challenges and opportunities involved in curating coral. I argue that, while it can be difficult to convey the complex natural characteristics of corals through displays of coral specimens in museums, exhibitions such as Coral: Something Rich and Strange (2013‐14), and artworks such as Christine and Margaret Wertheim’s Crochet Coral Reef (2005‐present) and Tamiko Thiel’s Unexpected Growth (2018‐19), can deepen a sense of wonder in exhibition visitors and foster experiences of connection between humans and marine invertebrates ‐ ultimately to encourage ‘response-ability’ to and for the natural world. I suggest that collaborative, cross-disciplinary modes of exhibition making ‐ such as displaying works of art alongside scientific or natural history specimens ‐ provides curators with opportunities to intensify the affective responses of audiences.

Underwater noise impact assessment and the hearing response of marine animals

2010 ◽  
Vol 50 (2) ◽  
pp. 741
Author(s):  
Granger Bennett ◽  
Jim McLoughlin
Keyword(s):  
Impact Assessment ◽  
Anthropogenic Noise ◽  
Marine Animal ◽  
Underwater Noise ◽  
Marine Animals ◽  
Spectral Content ◽  
Noise Impact ◽  
Noise Measurements ◽  
Human Hearing ◽  
Noise Impacts

The ability of a marine animal to hear anthropogenic (man-made) sound underwater is affected by the animal’s auditory bandwidth and its sensitivity to sound of different frequencies within that bandwidth. Auditory bandwidths for marine animals vary from species to species and may or may not coincide with, or overlap, human auditory bandwidths. For example, turtles are not able to hear some sounds that are clearly audible to humans, while dolphins can hear sounds that are beyond the range of human hearing. Therefore, underwater noise impacts assessments for marine animals need to take into account both the spectral content of the anthropogenic noise and the auditory bandwidths of the various species under consideration. This paper demonstrates how the auditory bandwidth and sensitivity of marine animals to sounds of different frequencies can affect the outcomes of impact assessments. The analysis is supported by results from underwater noise modelling and noise measurements.

Prominence of environmental and anthropogenic agents on the occurrence of coral reef bleaching syndrome and coral diseases

2024 ◽  
Vol 74 (10) ◽  
pp. 6139-2024
Author(s):  
MICHAŁ SCHULZ ◽  
ALEKSANDRA ŁOŚ ◽  
PATRYCJA SKOWRONEK ◽  
ANETA STRACHECKA
Keyword(s):  
Coral Reef ◽  
Coral Reefs ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
Ecological Processes ◽  
Coral Diseases ◽  
Rapid Changes ◽  
Anthropogenic Threats ◽  
Negative Factors ◽  
Main Relationship

Coral reefs are the most productive ecosystems on Earth. They ensure the conservation of biodiversity and are a live habitat for 25% of all marine organisms. The main relationship on the coral reef is the symbiosis between corals and algae from the genus Symbiodinium (commonly called zooxanthellae). The authors of this publication have characterized and described the factors limiting the occurrence of coral reefs, including: water temperature, salinity, access to sunlight, contamination, physicochemical and hydromechanical parameters of water. Moreover anthropogenic threats to coral reefs have been specified, including diving tourism, ecological disasters (e.g. oil spills) and the development of marine aquaristics. Rapid changes in the basic living conditions are dangerous for corals and their symbionts and may cause the unsuitability of the new environment resulting in diseases such as coral bleaching. Corals bleaching is a disease associated with the break of the coral and algae relationship which results in a coral reef death on a global scale. Awareness of these negative factors, often related to human activity, may allow us to better understand the ecological processes that are the basis of reef functioning and might enable us to prevent and oppose to the changes and ecological recessions of coral reefs.

scholarly journals Neurotoxicity in Marine Invertebrates: An Update

Biology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 161
Author(s):  
Irene Deidda ◽  
Roberta Russo ◽  
Rosa Bonaventura ◽  
Caterina Costa ◽  
Francesca Zito ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nervous System ◽  
Marine Invertebrates ◽  
Marine Pollution ◽  
Marine Invertebrate ◽  
High Sensitivity ◽  
Model Systems ◽  
Neural Genes ◽  
Chemical Agents ◽  
Neurotoxic Effects ◽  
Invertebrate Model

Invertebrates represent about 95% of existing species, and most of them belong to aquatic ecosystems. Marine invertebrates are found at intermediate levels of the food chain and, therefore, they play a central role in the biodiversity of ecosystems. Furthermore, these organisms have a short life cycle, easy laboratory manipulation, and high sensitivity to marine pollution and, therefore, they are considered to be optimal bioindicators for assessing detrimental chemical agents that are related to the marine environment and with potential toxicity to human health, including neurotoxicity. In general, albeit simple, the nervous system of marine invertebrates is composed of neuronal and glial cells, and it exhibits biochemical and functional similarities with the vertebrate nervous system, including humans. In recent decades, new genetic and transcriptomic technologies have made the identification of many neural genes and transcription factors homologous to those in humans possible. Neuroinflammation, oxidative stress, and altered levels of neurotransmitters are some of the aspects of neurotoxic effects that can also occur in marine invertebrate organisms. The purpose of this review is to provide an overview of major marine pollutants, such as heavy metals, pesticides, and micro and nano-plastics, with a focus on their neurotoxic effects in marine invertebrate organisms. This review could be a stimulus to bio-research towards the use of invertebrate model systems other than traditional, ethically questionable, time-consuming, and highly expensive mammalian models.

scholarly journals Turbid Coral Reefs: Past, Present and Future—A Review

Diversity ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 251
Author(s):  
Adi Zweifler (Zvifler) ◽  
Michael O’Leary ◽  
Kyle Morgan ◽  
Nicola K. Browne
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Coral Reef ◽  
Coral Reefs ◽  
Environmental Change ◽  
Scientific Literature ◽  
Conservation Status ◽  
Climate Change Impacts ◽  
Geographic Range ◽  
Reef Complex ◽  
Sediment Input

Increasing evidence suggests that coral reefs exposed to elevated turbidity may be more resilient to climate change impacts and serve as an important conservation hotspot. However, logistical difficulties in studying turbid environments have led to poor representation of these reef types within the scientific literature, with studies using different methods and definitions to characterize turbid reefs. Here we review the geological origins and growth histories of turbid reefs from the Holocene (past), their current ecological and environmental states (present), and their potential responses and resilience to increasing local and global pressures (future). We classify turbid reefs using new descriptors based on their turbidity regime (persistent, fluctuating, transitional) and sources of sediment input (natural versus anthropogenic). Further, by comparing the composition, function and resilience of two of the most studied turbid reefs, Paluma Shoals Reef Complex, Australia (natural turbidity) and Singapore reefs (anthropogenic turbidity), we found them to be two distinct types of turbid reefs with different conservation status. As the geographic range of turbid reefs is expected to increase due to local and global stressors, improving our understanding of their responses to environmental change will be central to global coral reef conservation efforts.

scholarly journals Stokes drift through corals

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph J. Webber ◽  
Herbert E. Huppert
Keyword(s):  
Coral Reef ◽  
Coral Reefs ◽  
Porous Layer ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Fluid Layer ◽  
Ocean Waves ◽  
Stokes Drift ◽  
Inviscid Fluid ◽  
Porous Bed ◽  
Vertical Drift

AbstractMotivated by shallow ocean waves propagating over coral reefs, we investigate the drift velocities due to surface wave motion in an effectively inviscid fluid that overlies a saturated porous bed of finite depth. Previous work in this area either neglects the large-scale flow between layers (Phillips in Flow and reactions in permeable rocks, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1991) or only considers the drift above the porous layer (Monismith in Ann Rev Fluid Mech 39:37–55, 2007). Overcoming these limitations, we propose a model where flow is described by a velocity potential above the porous layer and by Darcy’s law in the porous bed, with derived matching conditions at the interface between the two layers. Both a horizontal and a novel vertical drift effect arise from the damping of the porous bed, which requires the use of a complex wavenumber k. This is in contrast to the purely horizontal second-order drift first derived by Stokes (Trans Camb Philos Soc 8:441–455, 1847) when working with solely a pure fluid layer. Our work provides a physical model for coral reefs in shallow seas, where fluid drift both above and within the reef is vitally important for maintaining a healthy reef ecosystem (Koehl et al. In: Proceedings of the 8th International Coral Reef Symposium, vol 2, pp 1087–1092, 1997; Monismith in Ann Rev Fluid Mech 39:37–55, 2007). We compare our model with field measurements by Koehl and Hadfield (J Mar Syst 49:75–88, 2004) and also explain the vertical drift effects as documented by Koehl et al. (Mar Ecol Prog Ser 335:1–18, 2007), who measured the exchange between a coral reef layer and the (relatively shallow) sea above.

scholarly journals Can we measure beauty? Computational evaluation of coral reef aesthetics

PeerJ ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
pp. e1390 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas F. Haas ◽  
Marine Guibert ◽  
Anja Foerschner ◽  
Tim Co ◽  
Sandi Calhoun ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Coral Reef ◽  
Coral Reefs ◽  
Local Population ◽  
Machine Learning Algorithms ◽  
Monitoring Tool ◽  
Photographic Images ◽  
Aesthetic Appearance ◽  
The Aesthetic ◽  
Monitoring Protocols ◽  
Aesthetic Values

The natural beauty of coral reefs attracts millions of tourists worldwide resulting in substantial revenues for the adjoining economies. Although their visual appearance is a pivotal factor attracting humans to coral reefs current monitoring protocols exclusively target biogeochemical parameters, neglecting changes in their aesthetic appearance. Here we introduce a standardized computational approach to assess coral reef environments based on 109 visual features designed to evaluate the aesthetic appearance of art. The main feature groups include color intensity and diversity of the image, relative size, color, and distribution of discernable objects within the image, and texture. Specific coral reef aesthetic values combining all 109 features were calibrated against an established biogeochemical assessment (NCEAS) using machine learning algorithms. These values were generated for ∼2,100 random photographic images collected from 9 coral reef locations exposed to varying levels of anthropogenic influence across 2 ocean systems. Aesthetic values proved accurate predictors of the NCEAS scores (root mean square error < 5 forN≥ 3) and significantly correlated to microbial abundance at each site. This shows that mathematical approaches designed to assess the aesthetic appearance of photographic images can be used as an inexpensive monitoring tool for coral reef ecosystems. It further suggests that human perception of aesthetics is not purely subjective but influenced by inherent reactions towards measurable visual cues. By quantifying aesthetic features of coral reef systems this method provides a cost efficient monitoring tool that targets one of the most important socioeconomic values of coral reefs directly tied to revenue for its local population.

scholarly journals Using virtual reality to estimate aesthetic values of coral reefs

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 172226 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julie Vercelloni ◽  
Sam Clifford ◽  
M. Julian Caley ◽  
Alan R. Pearse ◽  
Ross Brown ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Coral Reef ◽  
Coral Reefs ◽  
Structural Complexity ◽  
Natural Environments ◽  
Natural Ecosystems ◽  
Aesthetic Value ◽  
Natural Systems ◽  
Holistic Conservation ◽  
Past Experiences ◽  
Aesthetic Values

Aesthetic value, or beauty, is important to the relationship between humans and natural environments and is, therefore, a fundamental socio-economic attribute of conservation alongside other ecosystem services. However, beauty is difficult to quantify and is not estimated well using traditional approaches to monitoring coral-reef aesthetics. To improve the estimation of ecosystem aesthetic values, we developed and implemented a novel framework used to quantify features of coral-reef aesthetics based on people's perceptions of beauty. Three observer groups with different experience to reef environments (Marine Scientist, Experienced Diver and Citizen) were virtually immersed in Australian's Great Barrier Reef (GBR) using 360° images. Perceptions of beauty and observations were used to assess the importance of eight potential attributes of reef-aesthetic value. Among these, heterogeneity, defined by structural complexity and colour diversity, was positively associated with coral-reef-aesthetic values. There were no group-level differences in the way the observer groups perceived reef aesthetics suggesting that past experiences with coral reefs do not necessarily influence the perception of beauty by the observer. The framework developed here provides a generic tool to help identify indicators of aesthetic value applicable to a wide variety of natural systems. The ability to estimate aesthetic values robustly adds an important dimension to the holistic conservation of the GBR, coral reefs worldwide and other natural ecosystems.

scholarly journals Les rivages des Bermudes et les formes littorales de dissolution du calcaire

2005 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 115-137 ◽  
Author(s):  
François Taillefer
Keyword(s):  
Coral Reef ◽  
Coral Reefs ◽  
Mechanical Action ◽  
Intermediate Position ◽  
Striking Feature ◽  
Tidal Range ◽  
Intermediate Type ◽  
North East ◽  
The North

The littoral morphology of the Bermudas is an erosional morphology in limestones, the main processes being mechanical action and solution. The temperatures, in January and February, of the waters washing the Bermudas, are low enough to prevent the growing of true coral reefs. Therefore, it is not the morphology of a coral reef. The predominance of wave-cut cliffs is the most striking feature, despite the low and gently rolling topography. There are, however, other types of coasts on the islands, the mangrove being found on many sheltered shores. The writer thus opposes the sheltered shores of the sounds to the ones exposed on the southcoast, while the shores of the north and north-east coasts belong to an intermediate type. The steplike arrangement of the coastal forms of solution of the Bermudas limestones is primarily linked to the amount of the tidal range. These features are similar to those described on the shores of the warm seas, where the tide is negligible or weak. The Bermudas occupy an intermediate position between the regions where reefs are built by corals, and those, to the north, where solution, helped by other processes, occurs without compensation.

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