Climate change impacts on mesophotic regions of the Great Barrier Reef
dc.contributor.author | McWhorter, JK | |
dc.contributor.author | Halloran, PR | |
dc.contributor.author | Roff, G | |
dc.contributor.author | Mumby, PJ | |
dc.date.accessioned | 2024-03-11T13:13:36Z | |
dc.date.issued | 2024-04-08 | |
dc.date.updated | 2024-03-11T10:26:19Z | |
dc.description.abstract | Climate change projections for coral reefs are founded exclusively on sea surface temperatures (SST). While SST projections are relevant for the shallowest reefs, neglecting ocean stratification overlooks the striking differences in temperature experienced by deeper reefs for all or part of the year. Density stratification creates a buoyancy barrier partitioning the upper and lower parts of the water column. Here, we mechanistically downscale climate models and quantify patterns of stratification above mesophotic corals (depth 30-50 m) of the Great Barrier Reef (GBR). Stratification insulates many offshore regions of the GBR from heatwaves at the surface. However, this protection is lost once global average temperatures exceed ~3°C above pre industrial, after which mesophotic temperatures surpass a recognized threshold of 30°C for coral mortality. Bottom temperatures on the GBR (30-50 m) from 2050-2060 are estimated to increase by ~0.5-1°C under lower climate emissions (SSP1-1.9) and ~1.2-1.7°C under higher climate emissions (SSP5-8.5). In short, mesophotic coral reefs are also threatened by climate change and research might prioritize the sensitivity of such corals to stress. | en_GB |
dc.description.sponsorship | QUEX Institute | en_GB |
dc.description.sponsorship | Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) | en_GB |
dc.description.sponsorship | Australian Research Council (ARC) | en_GB |
dc.description.sponsorship | Reef Restoration & Adaptation Programme, Australian Government | en_GB |
dc.identifier.citation | Vol. 121 (16), article e2303336121 | en_GB |
dc.identifier.doi | 10.1073/pnas.2303336121 | |
dc.identifier.grantnumber | NE/V00865X/1 | en_GB |
dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/10871/135524 | |
dc.identifier | ORCID: 0000-0002-9227-0678 (Halloran, Paul) | |
dc.language.iso | en | en_GB |
dc.publisher | National Academy of Sciences | en_GB |
dc.relation.url | https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10810331 | |
dc.rights | © 2024. This version is made available under the CC-BY 4.0 license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ | en_GB |
dc.subject | Great Barrier Reef | en_GB |
dc.subject | climate refugia | en_GB |
dc.subject | mesophotic reefs | en_GB |
dc.subject | downscaling | en_GB |
dc.subject | bottom temperatures | en_GB |
dc.title | Climate change impacts on mesophotic regions of the Great Barrier Reef | en_GB |
dc.type | Article | en_GB |
dc.date.available | 2024-03-11T13:13:36Z | |
dc.identifier.issn | 1091-6490 | |
dc.description | This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from the National Academy of Sciences via the DOI in this record | en_GB |
dc.description | Data, Materials, and Software Availability: Anonymized csv data and scripts have been deposited in Zenodo (https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10810331) (90). | |
dc.identifier.journal | Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) | en_GB |
dc.rights.uri | https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ | en_GB |
dcterms.dateAccepted | 2024-02-28 | |
dcterms.dateSubmitted | 2023-02-27 | |
rioxxterms.version | AM | en_GB |
rioxxterms.licenseref.startdate | 2024-02-29 | |
rioxxterms.type | Journal Article/Review | en_GB |
refterms.dateFCD | 2024-03-11T10:26:22Z | |
refterms.versionFCD | AM | |
refterms.dateFOA | 2024-05-20T15:22:00Z | |
refterms.panel | C | en_GB |
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Except where otherwise noted, this item's licence is described as © 2024. This version is made available under the CC-BY 4.0 license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/