The effects of exposure to near-future levels of ocean acidification on shell characteristics of Pinctada fucata (Bivalvia: Pteriidae)
By Heather M. Welladsen, P. Southgate, K. Heimann. Molluscan Research, 2010
124 citations recorded by the source corpus.
Atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations have greatly increased since the beginning of the industrial age. This has led to a decline in global ocean pH by 0.1 units, and continued decline of 0.3–0.5 units is predicted by the end of 2100. Acidification of the ocean has led to decreased calcification rates and dissolution of calcareous structures in a range of marine species. Shells of the pearl oyster Pinctada fucata exposed to acidified seawater (pH 7.8 and pH 7.6) for 28 days were 25.9% and 26.8% weaker than controls (pH 8.1–8.2), respectively, but there was no reduction in the organic content of shells exposed to acidified condi-tions. Scanning electron microscopy analysis of the growing edge of nacre lining the shells of P. fucata showed that shells exposed to acidified conditions (pH 7.6) showed signs of malformation and/or dissolution, when compared to controls. The reduction in shell strength and the possible nacre malformation could have broad impacts on the ecology of pearl oysters and consequences for the cultured pearl industry that relies on them.
Subfields: Biomaterials, Global and Planetary Change, Oceanography
View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/99fa7b003fc7c25dcd9d45f51a8de77bff885ed4
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Citations in the corpus
- Impacts of ocean acidification on marine shelled molluscs (2013, result): “This confirmed the results of Beniash et al. (2010) and Welladsen et al. (2010) on oysters, showing that the ultrastructure and the mechanical properties of the shells were significantly altered under high CO 2 .”
- Linking the biological impacts of ocean acidification on oysters to changes in ecosystem services: A review (2017, background): “Under OA, shell calcification 576 is negatively affected as shell dissolution increases (Welladsen et al., 2010) as 577 a result of corrosive waters.”