A study was conducted on the West Coast of the United States to see ocean acidification’s effects on pteropods.
Limacina helicina was used to test the sensitivity to decreasing pH. This species of pteropod is potentially vulnerable to the corrosive waters associated with ocean acidification due to their calcium carbonate shell.
The shell of a pteropod was immersed in ocean water with the projected pH level that the water will reach by the year 2100.
After a month and a half in the water, the shell had almost completely dissolved.
A study was conducted on the West Coast of the United States to see ocean acidification’s effects on pteropods. Limacina helicina was used to test the sensitivity to decreasing pH. This species of pteropod is potentially vulnerable to the corrosive waters associated with ocean acidification due to their calcium carbonate shell. The shell of a pteropod was immersed in ocean water with the projected pH level that the water will reach by the year 2100. After a month and a half in the water, the shell had almost completely dissolved.
Pteropoda