Pteropods as Bioindicators of Climate Change in New England Waters

Abstract

Human activities, notably the burning of fossil fuels, are causing dramatic changes to the physics and chemistry of the marine environment. One poorly understood or monitored aspect of these changes are the consequences of the changing pH of the marine environment - otherwise known as ocean acidification. Dr. Maas will discuss the effects of ocean acidification on a sensitive calcifying organism in the Gulf of Maine - the shelled pteropod or “sea butterfly” Limacina helicina, and how these data can be used to improve biological monitoring on the East Coast.