Accord to the New York Times article, “The Return of the ‘Blob’: Hawaii’s Reefs Threatened by Marine Heat Wave”, coral reefs in Hawaii are subject to bleaching from a huge heat wave. In 2014, there was a heat wave called the “Blob”, which stretched from Mexico to Alaska and led to the first bleaching in Hawaii. Researchers believe that the Blob has been caused by climate change. Researcher Jamison Grove told the Times that the Blob had accounted for 50% of coral loss. The situation is dire, but researchers are more prepared for the new Blob. They are using a satellite observation and a network of sensors; in addition, community members use a system to document any bleached coral on a website. Within a month, there has been a great increase in bleached coral. Additionally, there is an algae problem as well. The high increase in sea temperatures have caused the release of neurotoxins from algae. Shellfish eat the algae, which causes other animals to die from eating the shellfish. During the blob, large amounts of sea birds and sea lions washed up on the shore dead. Plus, hundreds of thousands of cod have disappeared off the coast of Alaska. The neurotoxins also caused crab fisheries to close down. There is a big problem with overfishing; however, this is due to climate change, which is frightening since there are no perfect solutions. The algae and the coral have caused entire ecosystems to shut down. If the Blob continues to spread, then it could be a serious threat to Hawaii’s ecosystem.
This relates to what we discuss in class because of exponential models. As climate change and sea temperatures exponentially increases, there are harmful affects in underwater ecosystems. The Blob could grow exponentially as well, which could harm coral reefs outside of Hawaii as well. In 2015, the Blob grew from Mexico to Alaska, yet it could grow even bigger than that this year. Additionally, this relates to feedback loops. Climate change is amplifying, which means temperatures will continue to increase, which will increase the amount of coral reefs subject to bleaching. The release of algae toxins will also increase causing many more deaths and break up aquatic food webs. Coral reefs are extremely important to the oceans and provide homes to fishes, yet without the reefs, whole ecosystems collapse. If the Blob lasts a long time, it could speed up the process bleaching and will cause economic damage to Hawaii as well. Without reefs, there will be a decrease in fish, which will cause a decrease in fishing. Ultimately, the Blob will cause great damage and it is affected by the exponential growth and amplifying feedback loop of climate change and increasing ocean temperatures.