Overview
Now that we've covered ecology module and biogeochemical cycles, I'd like you to complete an assignment that ties what you've learned together. You'll watch a documentary about coral reef ecology and discuss your learning with your peers. BACKGROUND INFORMATION AND QUICK FACTS The Ocean is one of the Earth’s Final Frontiers. We know more about the moon than our oceans. We’ve only explored 5% of the ocean, meaning that there is so much more to discover. Those discoveries could be valuable to us all. Organisms that live on coral reefs are major sources of new drugs, including treatments for cancer, arthritis, asthma, AIDS, and other diseases. The cone snail, for example, may be small but can provide some serious pain relief. Corals have Huge Environmental and Economic Value. At least half a billion people directly rely on healthy coral reefs for food and livelihood. Coral reefs provide habitat for fisheries, create tourism opportunities and provide natural protection from big waves that cause coastal erosion. The full environmental and economic value of coral reefs is estimated at $375 billion per year. Corals are in Hot Water, and We Need to Help. Scientists around the world are taking action to save corals for the future. Some are collecting the “seed banks” to preserve the biodiversity of the corals. Others are designing reef restoration projects or examining how to genetically alter corals so that they can be more resilient. Ultimately, we’re trying to preserve these fragile ecosystems the best we can, while we also focus on the larger solution: accelerating climate action. Quick Facts ◦ We’ve lost 50% of the world’s corals in the last 50 years ◦ 25% of the marine life in the ocean depends on coral reefs ◦ The full environmental and economic value of coral reefs is estimated at $375 billion per year ◦ Less than 1% of people ever get to experience coral reefs in person. spend time exploring coral reefs in their lifetime ◦ The full environmental and economic value of coral reefs is estimated at $375 billion per year ◦ 93% of the heat trapped in the atmosphere is absorbed by the ocean, with sea surface temperatures rising at an average rate of 0.13°F per decade since 1901 ◦ In the 2016 global bleaching event, we lost 29% of the Great Barrier Reef ◦ The average temperature on Earth is 58 oF (14.4 oC). If the ocean wasn’t absorbing the heat content from carbon emissions, the average temperature of the planet would be 122 oF (50 oC) ◦ At this rate, within the next 25 years, ocean temperatures will become too warm for corals to survive ASSIGNMENT DIRECTIONS 1 Watch this 90-minute Netflix documentary called Chasing Coral on YouTube. () Chasing Coral taps into the collective will and wisdom of an ad man, a self-proclaimed coral nerd, top-notch camera designers, and renowned marine biologists as they invent the first time-lapse camera to record bleaching events as they happen. Unfortunately, the effort is anything but simple, and the team doggedly battles technical malfunctions and the force of nature in pursuit of their golden fleece: documenting the indisputable and tragic transformation below the waves. 2 After you've watched the documentary, post a discussion answering the following: 1 What were you most surprised to discover about coral reefs? 2 If you knew something about coral bleaching before the film, how has your impression changed after seeing the film? 3 In what ways are corals/the ocean important to our community (even for us living in Butte County or surrounding areas)? 4 In the film, you heard the voice of many scientists. Who else is or needs to be communicating about what’s happening to coral reefs? 5 What actions can we take as individuals and as a community to preserve coral reefs? In the discussion, you should answer all the questions above. Please use formal writing with correct spelling and grammar. Y