Coral Reef Resilience: Better Feeders Survive Bleaching

[phantom power]

This confirms my hunch that some corals must survive major ocean changes, and re-radiate new species later. One "benefit" of what's coming is that we're likely to witness evolution on a scale never seen in recorded history. Although any human survivors may be much too busy to pay close attention.

Coral bleaching, a stress response that turns rainbow-hued reefs into bone-white graveyards, is damaging reefs worldwide. But some corals survive. A Nature report identifies a new trait critical to coral resiliency – the ability to kick feeding rates into overdrive.

In an experiment with three species of Hawaiian corals researchers found that, when bleached, the branching coral Montipora capitata sharply increased its intake of tiny plankton, making it much more likely to bounce back. The findings suggest that any coral, regardless of shape or location, may recover from bleaching if it can ramp up feeding.

James Palardy, a Brown University graduate student and co-author of the Nature paper, said the results indicate that these corals may become the dominant species in reefs and could play a role in protecting these critical marine ecosystems.

“These ‘super-feeders’ have an ecological advantage, one that may protect reefs from extinction,” Palardy said. “If our results hold up with other species, we may well see that these resilient corals are the future for our reefs.”

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/04/060428095849.htm

[Kagemusha]

1. Not that this is a defense of global pollution, BUT

I've always found it pretty insulting to nature that people act like nature's incredibly fragile and can't possibly survive contact with humans unless humans are pure and good, that everything's in perfect balance until we throw it off.

Sorry, no way.

Species do not last this long by being so fragile that any little ocean change can totally crush them and wipe them out. Mass bleaching isn't GOOD, but saying it's guaranteed to be 100% fatal is showing impressive ignorance that living things work to survive. Survival doesn't happen by chance.

Though that cuts into the religious fervor that it's all up to man to destroy or preserve. Ego's boosted more by that view, on both sides of the environmental isse.