Climate change is a big problem for corals (珊瑚虫). I div e to find out. By keeping track of corals in French Polynesia, I hope to determine how much stress they're under.
Coral reefs are like underwater cities made up of tiny animals called corals. They are in symbiosis with tiny plants called algae (海藻). The algae make food for the corals using sunlight. This is called photosynthesis (光合作用). In return, corals produce carbon dioxide and waste, which can be used by the algae as raw materials for photosynthesis.
In French Polynesia, there's a place called Moorea where scientists study corals. My colleagues and I use special floating platforms to look at the corals from different angles. This helps us find problems, like when other plants try to take over.
Two types of coral, Acropora pulchra and Acropora cytherea, are being studied. The pulchra stays its usual dark yellow color, but the cytherea, which is usually light brown or purple, has turned white. This white color is not good. It happens when the water gets too warm for too long. The corals get stressed and push out the algae. Without the algae, the corals can't get food and they turn white, which can lead to them dying.
When my colleagues and I go diving, we use a plastic sheet to help us look at the corals and write down what we see. We check the water temperature, the color of the corals, and if we see any signs of the corals being in trouble.
Some corals seem to be stronger and can handle warmer water better than others. We want to find out why this is, so we can help protect corals. But the best way to help corals is to stop pollution and global warming, which are making the oceans too warm for them.
