"Field Studies Matter in Ocean Acidification Experiments"

Source:

http://www.co2science.org/articles/V24/feb/a11.php

Foo, S.A., Koweek, D.A., Munari, M.,
Gambi, M.C., Byrne, M. and
Caldeira, K.

2020

Responses of sea urchin larvae
to field and laboratory acidification.

Science of the Total Environment 723:
138003, doi.org/10.1016/j.scitoenv.2020.138003.

...  Foo et al. (2020) state that most so-called ocean acidification studies on marine calcifiers "have been conducted in a laboratory setting, typically involving stable pH conditions," which studies tend to show an "overall negative effect of acidification with impaired development and calcification."

... they say ... laboratory studies fail to incorporate "the [full] range of environmental factors present in nature and their inherent variability."

... If this study had only been conducted in the laboratory (as nearly all ocean acidification studies are) ... the results would have been such that the authors would have concluded rising CO2 (i.e., ocean acidification) is detrimental to A. lixula larval growth.

Yet, by incorporating field treatments into their study, the future outlook flipped from a completely negative assessment to one that is entirely positive.

... it seems only obvious ... the best and most realistic experimental conditions are required in order to produce a realistic assessment of the future potential impacts of ocean acidification on marine life.

... Foo et al. conducted simultaneous experiments on three populations of sea urchin embryos in both a laboratory and natural field setting.

The field site was near an underwater CO2 vent located off the northeastern coast of Ischia, Italy.

In reporting their findings Foo et al. state that, "surprisingly, acidification had opposite effects on larval growth in the laboratory and in the field."