Coral Bleaching & Acidification
Explain the mutualistic symbiosis between coral polyps and photosynthetic zooxanthellae; describe how heat stress causes bleaching (corals expel zooxanthellae and turn white); explain ocean acidification chemistry: CO2 dissolves in seawater to form carbonic acid, lowering pH and dissolving calcium carbonate skeletons; connect reef loss to the collapse of habitat for ~25% of marine species; evaluate current reef restoration efforts
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Has your child heard of coral bleaching? Can they explain what's actually happening to the coral — what breaks down between the coral and the tiny algae living inside it, and why warmer or more acidic water triggers this?
Explain the mutualistic symbiosis between coral polyps and photosynthetic zooxanthellae; describe how heat stress causes bleaching (corals expel zooxanthellae and turn white); explain ocean acidification chemistry: CO2 dissolves in seawater to form carbonic acid, lowering pH and dissolving calcium carbonate skeletons; connect reef loss to the collapse of habitat for ~25% of marine species; evaluate current reef restoration efforts
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“Has your child heard of coral bleaching? Can they explain what's actually happening to the coral — what breaks down between the coral and the tiny algae living inside it, and why warmer or more acidic water triggers this?”
Curriculum record
- Type
- Conceptual
- Subject
- Science
- Domain
- Ocean Life
- Age range
- Ages 12–13