Lamia Al-Siddiq (Abu Dhabi)
Coral reefs Beautiful paintings that support biodiversity in the depths of the seas and oceans, and are considered a natural habitat for rare species of fish and marine organisms, with their important role in protecting beaches from erosion.
Coral reefs cover only 0.1% of the seas and oceans, yet nearly 25% of marine life depends on them at some point in their lives, making them a vibrant environment full of noise, din and sound.
Read also: Coral reefs and the third level of danger
Coral reefs are found in all oceans of the world, from the tropics to the polar regions. Human activities, such as coastal development, dredging, sewage discharge, sedimentation, pollution, damage to boat and ship anchors, landfilling, and abandoned or lost fishing gear, are the main threats to coral reefs.
Sounds of the reefs:
Some may wonder about the significance of the crackling, popping, grinding and chirping sounds that echo around the clock from within coral reefs, but marine acoustic scientists confirm that these sounds reflect the nature of life and the extent of its prosperity within the reefs. These sounds may help different types of fish to identify their surrounding environment, such as small fish larvae that come out to life in the open waters of oceans and seas and then feel their way through the sounds of the reefs until they reach them as their natural environment in which they live throughout their various life cycles.
According to media outlets, Isla Casey Davidson, a marine bioacoustics researcher at Cornell University, says that recent studies have shown that coral reefs themselves rely on sounds to determine the best places for their growth. She explains that corals grow over thousands of years and may live up to five thousand years. They usually grow in a cumulative manner on top of each other, and therefore rely on sounds to determine the empty spaces that allow them to continue growing continuously, or to know the most suitable environment for their presence based on the presence of other corals living in the same area. Then they exploit these sounds to constantly adjust their movement behaviors.
Just as humans and other animal species rely on sounds as a means of communication and learning about their surroundings, the same thing happens in the deep sea. However, the difference is that marine organisms rely on different types and patterns of sound signals and use different sensors and recognition units to detect and interpret these sounds, especially since sounds travel five times faster in the deep sea than they do in the air.
Listen to the sounds of the sea:
There is currently a global research project involving hundreds of bioacoustics scientists from around the world on the occasion of World Oceans Day, the “WOPAM Ocean Passive Acoustics Monitoring Project”, which aims to listen to the sounds of the sea, connect these sounds with each other, and explore their depths, which helps explain the lifestyles of marine organisms that live inside coral reefs. The project seeks to reach a comprehensive global view and answer scientific questions by listening to these audio recordings.
It is important to understand that the sounds of marine organisms vary from one place to another in the depths, as if they have different languages or dialects that they rely on to communicate with each other. The participating researchers are also keen to distinguish sounds resulting from human sources and separate them from sounds emitted by components of natural marine environments.
Watch.. Abu Dhabi cultivates an endangered species of coral reefs
The project discusses how to listen to the sounds of coral reefs, as some people prefer to listen to these sounds in a musical context in order to immerse themselves in them and achieve the desired form of interaction.
A number of musicians will be involved, including a distinguished musician from Colombia named Alejandro Bernal, who listened to all the sounds recorded from the coral reefs and created an original sound symphony from them as a form of participation or engagement in this initiative that serves marine conservation efforts by monitoring any sound changes occurring in different marine environments.
Each marine spot has a different acoustic signature, and is constantly changing and transforming. This difference is due to the nature of the marine organisms that live or disappear from a specific spot in the coral reefs.
Proactive initiatives:
The UAE has taken pioneering steps to protect coral reefs from threat and extinction, by adopting initiatives and programs that have contributed to increasing their areas and working to preserve and protect them for future generations, through coral reef farming projects that contribute to the prosperity of marine life and fish wealth, restoring balance to the marine environment, and providing a sustainable marine environment. The coral reef farming project is considered one of the most prominent projects implemented by the Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi within the framework of the first Abu Dhabi plan towards achieving the goals of the Environmental Centennial 2071, as the coral reef farming project comes within the path of “A vibrant emirate thriving in nature.”
Facts and information:
Coral reefs grow in different shapes depending on the species.
Some resemble trees, brains, and honeycombs.
Unlike plants, corals do not make their own food.
Coral reefs are actually animals, not plants.
They usually eat at night and share food with others. Their stomachs are connected to each other!
When coral reefs begin to die off due to environmental or human factors, a phenomenon known as “bleaching,” the sounds they emit gradually become dulled by the decline in marine life, and they sound like they are sick or diseased.
Read also: Coral reef rehabilitation
A US government agency has warned that the massive wave of global coral bleaching caused by record ocean temperatures is continuing to expand and worsen.
This phenomenon, which threatens coral reefs, has been confirmed in 62 countries and territories, in both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres.
Understanding how much bleaching will affect coral reefs will take time. In the Caribbean, for example, corals that survive the heat may die within a year or two “from disease or predators.”
Floating coral nursery:
Cyprus is seeking to rehabilitate its coral reefs by establishing a floating nursery, a unique initiative in the Mediterranean Sea, aiming to compensate for the negative impact of global warming and excessive tourism on these reefs.
Maya the beautiful coral castle: Maya Bay Beach, Thailand’s magnificent coral reef fortress, is facing a major threat due to climate change, which has damaged its coral reefs by 70%, so the bay has been included in the list of places threatened with disappearance due to global warming.
Great Barrier Reef:
Water temperatures in and around Australia’s Great Barrier Reef have risen to their highest levels in 400 years over the past decade, putting the world’s largest coral reef at risk, according to published research.
The Great Barrier Reef, the world’s largest living ecosystem, stretches for 2,400 kilometres off the coast of Queensland in northern Australia.
Since 2016, the Great Barrier Reef has experienced massive coral bleaching over five summers, a process in which large parts of the reef turn white due to heat stress, putting them at greater risk of death.
2023 was the hottest year on record, driven by climate change exacerbated by the recurring El Niño phenomenon.
Coral reefs are among the richest ecosystems in the world, and are vital habitats for many species that guarantee biodiversity but are greatly affected by environmental changes. Protecting diverse coral reef networks helps ensure the greatest opportunity for genetic diversity.
Coral reefs are not just beautiful natural landmarks, they are essential parts of the marine ecosystem that many people around the world depend on. Preserving them is not just an option, it is a necessity to maintain ecological balance and ocean health.
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