Coral Reefs on Acid LabDirections: Follow the steps in each box. Use the pictures to help answer the questions. Answer the questions using both

pictures & written response. Write your answers on a separate piece of paper.

Modified from: InSTEP ‘Dude –where’d the reef go?’

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1. What are Coral Reefs?• Where are they located? Zone?

• What are they made of?

• Who uses them?

• Why are they important?

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2. Coral Cover Observation • What has happened to Coral Cover % from 1977 to 2002? • Why do you think this has happened?• How does this relate to question 1?

• Graph of Coral Cover• See Figure 6. at http://www.climateshifts.org/?p=6348

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3. Demo• Add 5 to 8 drops of vinegar

onto a shell or coral. Write your observations. You may need to use a microscope or hand-lens.

• Why is this happening? What is vinegar? What is the shell made of? (hint- think pH)

• How does this relate to question 2?

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4. Demo• Take a small cup of salt water. Add pH

indicator into it. What is the pH?

• Then, using a straw, blow bubbles into the cup for 15 to 20 seconds. What do you notice about the pH of Salt water after blowing “bubbles” into it?

• What are the “bubbles” made out of?

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5. CO2 + Water= ?• What is

happening to CO2 in this picture?

• How does this relate to question 4?

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• See Carbon dioxide entering the water picture at

• http://askascientist.co.uk/chemistry/ocean-acidity-what-is-ph-anyway/

6. CO2 concentration • What is the

trend?

• What is causing this trend?

• Where is some of the extra CO2 going?

• How does this relate to question 5?

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• See Mauna Loa Carbon dioxide data at

• http://celebrating200years.noaa.gov/datasets/mauna/

7. Mauna Loa Data 1985-2006

• Carbonate (Calicum) levels are ___________

• pH is ____________

• CO2 concentration is _____________

Fill in the BLANKS

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Adapted from Ocean-acidification.net by Wolf-gladrow et al., 1999 (9).

8. CONCLUSION

• Because Carbon Dioxide levels are….

• This is causing the ocean to become….

• This is affecting coral reefs because…

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9. What else depends on carbonate? List 5

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10. Acidification Projections

What if the CO2 amount trend continues, as is, into our future?

from Hoegh-Guldberg et al (2007) 

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11. What can we (you) do? List 5

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