Summary: On February 5th, a flood hit Australia. This flood had an obvious effect, which is wiping out many of the land’s features. However, there was a secondary effect that wasn’t so noticeable which is destruction to the Great Barrier Reef. “Expected damage will include smashed coral beds, movements of coral boulders, sand and rubble and major disturbance to sea grass beds,” proclaimed the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority. “Floodwater can hurt reefs in many ways,” stated Huffington Post. “Coral becomes stressed when the level of salt in the water drops. The high concentration of soil nutrients in floodwater provides food for coral competitors such as certain types of algae. Sediment saps coral of energy by blocking the light it needs to nourish itself, and pesticides in the water can kill the coral outright.” With the marine protected areas, the reefs have been showing signs of coming back from over-fishing, pollution, rising ocean temperatures and changing pH balances. However the current flood was too much for the protectors to…you know, protect the reefs.
Opinion: I think this is not good. Even though that damage is not too bad, and the reef can still recover, for this short amount of time, the fish and plants that make up the reef will be very stressed and confused. If the situation got really bad, the reef would lose all control and not be able to support life. There would be no producers, then no consumers, then no secondary consumers, with a chain reaction leading to a non-existent “Great Barrier Reef.” Last year, I did a research paper on Australia and the reef was amazing, and I wanted to go there when I get a chance. I hope the floods are stopping and Australia can bounce back from the state they’re in now.
Questions:
1) What effects might this have on the people in Australia?
2) Do you think the floods are almost over?
3) What could be done to prevent further harm to the reefs?
1. I think that this will make it hard for the fish and ocean life in the area. I agree that they will be confused, and they have to find a way to continue their lives.
ReplyDelete2.I do think that the floods are almost over because floods can't last forever, and they have been going on for quite some time now.
3.I really don't think that anything could be done to prevent harm of the reefs because its a part of nature, and the floods are nature. It is hard to stop nature.
Extention:
ReplyDeleteI think that these floods are very dangerous. Every natural disaster has an effect on the environment in some way, and I think these floods will create a problem for many people. This is similar to how with all of the snow where we live people have had to adjust their ways of living like working from home. Do you think that these floods will stop soon?
Extention:
ReplyDeleteThis website goes into the floods in Australia.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110111/ap_on_re_as/as_australia_flooding
I think that the flooding in Australia is not good for the Great Barrier Reef, even if the effect of the floods wasn’t extremely bad. Any changes that occur in a habitat are bad for the animals living in them. It seems like an animal’s niche in the Great Barrier Reef could be messed up making them useless and unsure what to do. If this happens, animals might decide to leave the reef and go search for another habitat to live in. Doing this could cause a great effect on other animals in the reef and the food chain could be changed. Animal populations might decrease and some might increase if predators aren’t around to feed on certain animals. I remember learning about the Great Barrier Reef in middle school and I remember learning that many animals live there and also depend on each other to live. This flood could cause major changes to the Great Barrier Reef.
ReplyDeleteHere is a website that tells you more about how animals are being affected by changes occurring in the Great Barrier Reef: http://www.mesa.edu.au/habitat/gbr02.asp
Answer to Questions:
1)I think that the people will be more cautious of what occurs in the reef because it is a big attraction site for Australia and they want to keep the reef in the best condition they possibly can.
2)I think that floods are almost over because it can’t go on much longer considering the amount of time that it has been flooding already.
3)Nothing can be done to stop the flooding it is a part of nature. However, human interference and pollution to the reef could be stopped.
Uh oh. This is not good. I agree with Charles. Even though there was not that much damage, the long term affects will probably be pretty bad. I think that the scientists and whoever is in charge of maintaining the reef should work hard to fix it. Like Charles said, the sunlight is blocking the ability for algae and other producers to grow, hence no food for primary consumers, etc.
ReplyDeleteAnswer to questions:
1. The only effect I would think would have on the PEOPLE of Australia is a shortage of fish. And it wouldn't be too bad. So it does not have that much effect on the people.
2. I hope the floods are almost over. You never know with weather though.
3. Nothing can done to stop the actual floods, but (like Annette said) humans can help out by stopping pollution and things like that.
Questions I asked:
1. Are scientists and people responsible for maintaining the reef actually doing something???
2. Are a lot of sea animals dead?
I think that these floods are not great for this reef. As a result of the floods, there is expected to be smashed coral beds and disturbance to seagrass beds. This intense flooding could also affect not only the Great Barrier Reef, but also the food chain of Australia. The flooding has caused severe damage to algae, an organism at the bottom of the food chain. If an organism that eats algae suffers from starvation the next animal in the chain will start to die out and so forth. I think that this was a very interesting article to read and how it has changed the Great Barrier Reef.
ReplyDeleteExpansion:
http://www.skwirk.com.au/p-c_s-4_u-200_t-559_c-2085/VIC/8/Flood/Australias-ecosystems/Ecology/Science/ This is an interesting link on floods and droughts and how they are affecting the ecosystems of Australia.
Questions Answers:
(Answer to #2) No, I do not think the floods are over. Australia is surrounded by water all around and has a pretty steady amount of rainfall each year. If these floods continue, there may be no more Great Barrier Reef in 30 years.
3 Questions:
1. Why are these floods taking place?
2. Is there anything we can do to repair the damage that was done to the coral beds in the Great Barrier Reef?
3. What damage was done to the reef?