BIOL report. Biological & Biomedical Sciences Term Paper

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Sunscreen-like Film: A Solution to the Great Barrier Reef Coral Bleaching
When you hear the word underwater, you will most likely picture a vibrant coral reef teeming with ocean life. From schools of fishes swimming around to a colorful sea slug taking its time to move through the diverse underwater ecosystem. The corals, though they may look like plants, are animals, living and coexisting with abundant biodiversity. Corals are marine invertebrates living in compact colonies of polyps—with sizes ranging from as small as a pinhead to as big as a basketball. These serve as the habitat to countless marine animals, all living together in symbiosis.
Around the world, coral reefs—or the rainforests of the sea—are facing tremendous pressure ecologically and climate change is one of its colossal adversaries. Climate change is the greatest environmental threat humanity is currently facing, and is taking its toll on marine life. Different marine animals are experiencing sudden temperature changes in their habitat that can cause permanent damage and mortality. As for the corals, they experience bleaching episodes as a reaction to the rapidly changing ocean temperatures.
Coral bleaching—an unfortunate phenomenon—is when the coral turns white. A bleached coral is nutritionally compromised. The zooxanthellae—microorganisms living inside the polyps—are responsible for processing food they share with the corals and for its bold colors. As the natural reaction to the higher ocean temperature, the zooxanthellae are expelled by the polyps leaving the coral structure colorless, or simply white from the calcium carbonate skeleton. This occurrence deprives the corals of the nutrition it needs to sustain itself. Though short-term bleaching can be recuperated from, prolonged bleaching will eventually lead to the mortality of the reefs. A process caused by, and not limited to, pollution, excessive sunlight and or higher temperatures.
One good example of a coral reef experiencing coral bleaching is the Great Barrier Reef in the northern part of Australia. This known living treasure is the largest natural reef structure visible from space. Though the cause of damage is not limited to climate change, it has played its part to make the Great Barrier Reef’s health from dire to critical. Continually having the surprising yearly episodes of coral bleaching causing serious damage. This affects not only the corals but also the marine life living in and amongst them.
A damaged coral reef’s effect is not only limited to the marine life depending on them as habitat but this damage affects human beings too. For example, without the healthy coral reefs, the resources, like reef fish that rely on them, gradually decrease until there is not enough to supply the needs of humans. It is a continuous chain that leads to more and more serious problems. This is why conservationists are working hard to save and prevent the reefs from dying.
At early this year, the journal Science published an analysis that shows that an opportunity to save the Great Barrier Reef is rapidly coming to an end. Though scientist and conservat...