January 8, 2010
They’re called flatworms, but the name does little to describe them apart from the fact that they were, well, flat! Finding a flatworm on the reef can be as exciting as spotting a brilliant nudibranch. As these pictures as testament, flatworms come in an array of colours that may include texture and intricate patterns. Flatworms are from the Phylum Platyhelminthes, and are the simplest of the worm group. It is soft-bodied, unsegmented, has no skeleton no body cavity, and no specialized Circulatory system and Respiratory system. They have a combined digestive/excretory system – taking food in and getting rid of wastes through the same opening, like sea urchins and sea cucumbers! They also have a central nervous system and a simple brain to co-ordinate their well developed muscular system.
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December 28, 2009
Image: Tamara Shopsin and Jason Fulford
December 26, 2009
The New York Times
For the many disappointments of the recent climate talks in Copenhagen, there was at least one clear positive outcome, and that was the progress made on a program called Reducing Emissions From Deforestation and Forest Degradation. Under this program, key elements of which were agreed on at Copenhagen, developing countries would be compensated for preserving forests, peat soils, swamps and fields that are efficient absorbers of carbon dioxide, the primary heat-trapping gas linked to global warming.
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December 20, 2009
Once again, Blog volunteer Jimmy Goh returns from a trip at Hantu Island with some fascinating macro insights into local seas. What a lovely perspective of these usually skittish animals! (Above: Ornate goby)
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December 17, 2009
The effects of ocean acidification on corals are particularly concerning since one quarter of all marine species depend on coral reefs for homes, nurseries, feeding grounds and spawning sites
Ocean acidification is the process caused by increasing man-made carbon dioxide emissions, by which the oceans are becoming more acidic.
When carbon dioxide enters the ocean, it combines with seawater to produce carbonic acid, which increases the acidity of the water.
Rising carbon dioxide emissions, primarily from the burning of fossil fuels for energy, has led to a 30 per cent rise in ocean acidity from pre-industrial levels, as measured by a fall of 0.1 units in the pH of ocean surface waters.
If carbon emissions growth continues at the current rate, the pH of ocean surface water will fall 0.2 units by 2050, lower than at any time in the last 20 million years. By the end of this century, the pH will have fallen 0.4 units from its natural level – close to a doubling of ocean acidity. The change is happening 100 times faster than at any time in the history of the planet.
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