Journal
SMALL
Volume 18, Issue 35, Pages -Publisher
WILEY-V C H VERLAG GMBH
DOI: 10.1002/smll.202107407
Keywords
adaptation; biomineralization; calcifying organisms; climate change; meta-analysis
Categories
Funding
- Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities [SWU118105]
- China Postdoctoral Science Foundation [2019M663419]
- National Natural Science Foundation of China [42176199]
- ARC [LP200201000]
- Australian Research Council [LP200201000] Funding Source: Australian Research Council
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This study comprehensively evaluates the impact of ocean acidification on calcifiers, finding that many calcifiers have strong tolerance to future ocean acidification and their adaptability has been underestimated. It is suggested that future research should focus on how marine organisms survive in an ocean acidification environment.
Ocean acidification is considered detrimental to marine calcifiers, but mounting contradictory evidence suggests a need to revisit this concept. This systematic review and meta-analysis aim to critically re-evaluate the prevailing paradigm of negative effects of ocean acidification on calcifiers. Based on 5153 observations from 985 studies, many calcifiers (e.g., echinoderms, crustaceans, and cephalopods) are found to be tolerant to near-future ocean acidification (pH approximate to 7.8 by the year 2100), but coccolithophores, calcifying algae, and corals appear to be sensitive. Calcifiers are generally more sensitive at the larval stage than adult stage. Over 70% of the observations in growth and calcification are non-negative, implying the acclimation capacity of many calcifiers to ocean acidification. This capacity can be mediated by phenotypic plasticity (e.g., physiological, mineralogical, structural, and molecular adjustments), transgenerational plasticity, increased food availability, or species interactions. The results suggest that the impacts of ocean acidification on calcifiers are less deleterious than initially thought as their adaptability has been underestimated. Therefore, in the forthcoming era of ocean acidification research, it is advocated that studying how marine organisms persist is as important as studying how they perish, and that future hypotheses and experimental designs are not constrained within the paradigm of negative effects.
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