Earth’s oceans absorb as much as one-third of the excess carbon dioxide pumped into the atmosphere by human activities. When that CO2 reacts with water, it forms carbonic acid, lowers the pH level of marine waters, and thus makes the oceans more acidic. While marine species can shift their ranges to avoid the warmer water temperatures driven by climate change, there is no way for them to escape ocean acidification. Research over the past few years has shown that ocean acidification impacts Atlantic cod at the earliest stages of their lives, while they are still eggs and larvae. A new study, which was published in the journal Global Change Biology last month, found that surviving cod larvae suffer significant organ damage and developmental delays that could cause problems throughout their lifetimes.
— source news.mongabay.com | 27 Mar 2019