NOAA National Centers for Coastal Ocean Sciences
The absorption of rising atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) into the oceans has caused ocean acidification and associated shifts in marine carbonate chemistry. In coastal waters, excessive nutrient runoff can also create regions of low oxygen, high CO2, and acidification. These conditions have been shown to be detrimental to growth and survival of larval and juvenile shellfish such as oysters, clams and scallops in laboratory studies, but the consequences of these effects on wild populations have been unknown.
Now, a new publication shows that the levels of impairment observed in laboratory experiments have the potential to cause increased risk to wild populations of marine bivalves in the northeastern USA.