WELLINGTON, Oct. 15 (Xinhua) -- Protecting seabirds and restoring native vegetation could help low-lying tropical atoll islands withstand rising sea levels by boosting coral reef growth and reducing erosion, a new study has found.
An international team analyzed ecological data from 28 atoll islands in the Indian and Pacific oceans to examine how nutrients from seabirds affect the islands and surrounding coral reefs, influencing their ability to adapt to climate change-driven sea-level rise, according to a statement from the University of Auckland released Thursday.
By looking at seabird census data, the researchers estimated the amount of "energy" seabirds bring from the open ocean back to each of the small atoll islands and how the nutrients, deposited in seabirds' droppings, influence the islands and surrounding marine ecosystems, according to the study published in Science Advances.
The study found that reefs in lagoons around islands free of invasive rats, which support abundant seabird populations, grew 1.8 times faster than reefs around rat-infested islands. Ocean-facing reefs grew 2.5 times faster around rat-free islands.
Seabird droppings transfer nutrients from the open ocean to islands and surrounding ecosystems, boosting coral growth and sediment production that helps build or maintain islands and reduce erosion as sea levels rise, the study found.
The researchers said that replacing abandoned coconut plantations with natural vegetation and restoring seabird populations by eradicating invasive rats could be key to the survival of low-lying islands. ■
