Center for Global Discovery and Conservation Science and School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USA.
Marine Science Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA.
Science. 2021 May 28;372(6545):977-980. doi: 10.1126/science.abd9464.
Climate change threatens coral reefs by causing heat stress events that lead to widespread coral bleaching and mortality. Given the global nature of these mass coral mortality events, recent studies argue that mitigating climate change is the only path to conserve coral reefs. Using a global analysis of 223 sites, we show that local stressors act synergistically with climate change to kill corals. Local factors such as high abundance of macroalgae or urchins magnified coral loss in the year after bleaching. Notably, the combined effects of increasing heat stress and macroalgae intensified coral loss. Our results offer an optimistic premise that effective local management, alongside global efforts to mitigate climate change, can help coral reefs survive the Anthropocene.
气候变化通过引发热应激事件威胁珊瑚礁，导致广泛的珊瑚白化和死亡。鉴于这些大规模珊瑚死亡事件的全球性，最近的研究认为，缓解气候变化是保护珊瑚礁的唯一途径。利用全球 223 个地点的分析，我们表明，当地压力源与气候变化协同作用杀死珊瑚。局部因素，如大型藻类或海胆的高丰度，会在白化后加剧珊瑚的损失。值得注意的是，不断增加的热应激和大型藻类的综合影响加剧了珊瑚的损失。我们的研究结果提供了一个乐观的前提，即有效的当地管理，加上全球缓解气候变化的努力，可以帮助珊瑚礁在人类世中生存下来。
