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Global warming transforms coral reef assemblages
Nature ( IF 64.8 ) Pub Date : 2018-04-01 , DOI: 10.1038/s41586-018-0041-2
Terry P. Hughes , James T. Kerry , Andrew H. Baird , Sean R. Connolly , Andreas Dietzel , C. Mark Eakin , Scott F. Heron , Andrew S. Hoey , Mia O. Hoogenboom , Gang Liu , Michael J. McWilliam , Rachel J. Pears , Morgan S. Pratchett , William J. Skirving , Jessica S. Stella , Gergely Torda

Global warming is rapidly emerging as a universal threat to ecological integrity and function, highlighting the urgent need for a better understanding of the impact of heat exposure on the resilience of ecosystems and the people who depend on them1. Here we show that in the aftermath of the record-breaking marine heatwave on the Great Barrier Reef in 20162, corals began to die immediately on reefs where the accumulated heat exposure exceeded a critical threshold of degree heating weeks, which was 3–4 °C-weeks. After eight months, an exposure of 6 °C-weeks or more drove an unprecedented, regional-scale shift in the composition of coral assemblages, reflecting markedly divergent responses to heat stress by different taxa. Fast-growing staghorn and tabular corals suffered a catastrophic die-off, transforming the three-dimensionality and ecological functioning of 29% of the 3,863 reefs comprising the world’s largest coral reef system. Our study bridges the gap between the theory and practice of assessing the risk of ecosystem collapse, under the emerging framework for the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Ecosystems3, by rigorously defining both the initial and collapsed states, identifying the major driver of change, and establishing quantitative collapse thresholds. The increasing prevalence of post-bleaching mass mortality of corals represents a radical shift in the disturbance regimes of tropical reefs, both adding to and far exceeding the influence of recurrent cyclones and other local pulse events, presenting a fundamental challenge to the long-term future of these iconic ecosystems.Acute heat stress from the extended marine heatwave of 2016 is a potent driver of the transformation of coral assemblages, which affects even the most remote and well-protected reefs of the Great Barrier Reef.

中文翻译:

全球变暖改变了珊瑚礁组合

全球变暖正迅速成为对生态完整性和功能的普遍威胁,突出表明迫切需要更好地了解热暴露对生态系统和依赖它们的人们的恢复力的影响1。在这里,我们表明,在 20162 年大堡礁创纪录的海洋热浪之后,珊瑚立即开始在珊瑚礁上死亡,因为累积的热量超过了加热周的临界阈值,即 3-4°C -周。八个月后,6°C 周或更长时间的暴露导致珊瑚组合组成发生前所未有的区域尺度变化,反映了不同分类群对热应激的明显不同反应。快速生长的鹿角珊瑚和板状珊瑚遭受了灾难性的灭绝,改变构成世界上最大珊瑚礁系统的 3,863 个珊瑚礁中 29% 的三维度和生态功能。我们的研究在国际自然保护联盟 (IUCN) 生态系统红色名录3 的新兴框架下,通过严格定义初始状态和崩溃状态,确定了生态系统崩溃风险评估的理论和实践之间的差距,从而弥合了评估生态系统崩溃风险的理论和实践之间的差距。变化的主要驱动力,并建立量化崩溃阈值。珊瑚漂白后大量死亡的日益普遍,代表着热带珊瑚礁扰动机制的根本转变,既增加了并远远超过了周期性气旋和其他当地脉冲事件的影响,对长期未来构成了根本性挑战这些标志性的生态系统。
更新日期:2018-04-01
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