4 ms·
Why are those guys in the videos touching and tugging on the coral? Quite certain that's a no-no, and setting a terrible example for others. For reference, se
by jaytaylor 8y ago
Why are those guys in the videos touching and tugging on the coral?
Quite certain that's a no-no, and setting a terrible example for others.
For reference, see "Coral Etiquette" [0]:
Simply touching corals to see
what they feel like can cause
the death of an entire colony.
Oils from your skin can
disturb the delicate mucous
membranes which protect the
animals from disease.
[0] https://sailhawaii.com/hawaii-wildlife/coral-hawaii/ https://sailhawaii.com/hawaii-wildlife/coral-hawaii/
- 3rdAccount 8y agoJust watched a PBS Nova special on rising CO2 levels and the impact on corral (requires lower acidity). Scientists in that episode removed coral for experiments. They removed a bit in the really high acidity areas. Interesting special, although I think it was from 2013 "lethal seas".
- mixmastamyk 8y agoCouldn’t dump a truckload of baking soda?
- 3rdAccount 8y agoJust in case you're serious, I think you would need to dump an entire small dwarf planet worth of baking soda which would probably have other negative consequences.
- mixmastamyk 8y agoIt’s cheap. We produce a small moon worth of CO2 each year.
- thiagocsf 8y agoHow could something that dies at a mere human touch have survived for so long?
- throwaway5752 8y agoThe etiquette is different for you and me than on of the world's foremost, eminent researchers. He has a different level of understanding of what is harmful and not harmful.
- jacquesm 8y agoLead by example. By showing this others might imitate, even though the etiquette might be different awareness of that fact should not be assumed.
- notafraudster 8y agoI don't know anything about coral, but I do know something about plants. Many botanical gardens have similar disclaimers about touching plants, but invariably what they actually mean is "Touching is fine, but some dumbass is going to take it too far and kill something, so we'll say no touching just to ensure it doesn't get to that point". Of course the vast majority of plants are safe to touch for you and the plant, and even those that are delicate or dangerous in some way can be safely touched by experts or researchers. Maybe coral is similar to this, maybe not, but by analogy I don't see a problem in offering the public a more conservative version of safe guidance.
- andai 8y agoCorals are sensitive. From above comment: > Simply touching corals to see what they feel like can cause death of an entire colony. Oils from your skin can disturb the delicate mucous membranes which protect the animals from disease.