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Evidence of bioeroders having bored holes into this coral skeleton.

Evidence of bioeroders having bored holes into this coral skeleton.
Evidence of bioeroders having bored holes into this coral skeleton.
Evidence of bioeroders having bored holes into this coral skeleton.
Evidence of bioeroders having bored holes into this coral skeleton.
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Barkley, Hannah
Evidence of bioeroders having bored holes into this coral skeleton.
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01/12/2016
panama_coral_bioerosion.jpg
Image Of the Day caption:
This coral may look like it was blasted by a shotgun, but these holes are occupied by tiny molluscs that bore into coral skeletons to escape predators. This process, called bio-erosion, is an important part of building coral reef, but too much bio-erosion weakens coral skeletons' ability to withstand strong currents, waves, and storms. WHOI scientist Anne Cohen examines the combination of stressors that threaten corals, including ocean warming and acidification. She and MIT-WHOI Joint Program students Hannah Barkley and Tom DeCarlo found that acidification increases corals' susceptibility to bio-erosion. However, when ocean acidification is combined with nutrient pollution, bioerosion rates increase tenfold.
Caption from Oceanus magazine, Vol. 51, No. 2, pg. 34:
This coral off the coast of Panama shows holes bored into its skeleton by bioeroders. Scientists see high bioerosion rates in Panama, whose waters have high nutrient levels and relatively low pH.
Caption from Oceanus online:
This coral off the coast of Panama shows holes bored into its skeleton by bioeroders.
Photo by Hannah Barkley
© Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
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