一國(guó)際研究小組發(fā)現(xiàn),，珊瑚幼蟲和一些魚類一樣,，需要依靠聲音辨別方向，從而尋找到棲息地,?？茖W(xué)家擔(dān)心，日益嚴(yán)重的噪音污染將影響到珊瑚礁的生長(zhǎng),，令本已十分脆弱的珊瑚礁生態(tài)系統(tǒng)“不堪重負(fù)”,。
英國(guó)布里斯托大學(xué)近日發(fā)布公報(bào)稱，包括該校研究人員在內(nèi)的一個(gè)國(guó)際研究小組在加勒比海地區(qū)研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，珊瑚幼蟲在尋找合適的棲息場(chǎng)所時(shí),，會(huì)受到聲音的強(qiáng)烈吸引,。正是通過(guò)棲息在珊瑚礁群中的海洋生物發(fā)出的聲音，珊瑚幼蟲才能夠向珊瑚礁集結(jié),，一代代繁衍生息,，從而促使珊瑚礁不斷成長(zhǎng)。而這種簡(jiǎn)單的生物是如何偵測(cè)到聲音的,，研究人員目前還沒弄清楚,。布里斯托大學(xué)的史蒂夫·辛普森博士認(rèn)為，可能是珊瑚幼蟲表面的細(xì)微絨毛能夠感知聲波對(duì)水分子造成的波動(dòng),，從而幫助它們辨別回家的方向,。
公報(bào)稱，由于全球變暖,、海水酸化等原因,，全球珊瑚礁退化現(xiàn)象十分嚴(yán)重，珊瑚礁已成為最脆弱的生態(tài)系統(tǒng)之一,。而新發(fā)現(xiàn)則使科學(xué)家們更擔(dān)心船舶航運(yùn),、海底鉆探、地震測(cè)試等人類行為所產(chǎn)生的噪音污染對(duì)本已脆弱的海洋生態(tài)造成更大的影響,。（生物谷Bioon.com）
更多閱讀
Science：珊瑚礁是多元化物種搖籃
PNAS：深海珊瑚擁有罕見的長(zhǎng)壽命
Nature：SERS技術(shù)或可用于食品安全和環(huán)境污染檢測(cè)
Nature：重新認(rèn)識(shí)氯污染
Current Biology：真菌可用于消除鈾污染
生物谷推薦原文出處：
PLoS ONE doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0010660
Coral Larvae Move toward Reef Sounds
Mark J. A. Vermeij1,2*, Kristen L. Marhaver3, Chantal M. Huijbers4, Ivan Nagelkerken4, Stephen D. Simpson5
1 Carmabi Foundation, Willemstad, Cura?ao, The Netherlands Antilles, 2 Aquatic Microbiology, Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 3 Marine Biology Research Division, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America, 4 Department of Animal Ecology and Ecophysiology, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, The Netherlands, 5 School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, Woodland Road, Bristol, United Kingdom
Free-swimming larvae of tropical corals go through a critical life-phase when they return from the open ocean to select a suitable settlement substrate. During the planktonic phase of their life cycle, the behaviours of small coral larvae (<1 mm) that influence settlement success are difficult to observe in situ and are therefore largely unknown. Here, we show that coral larvae respond to acoustic cues that may facilitate detection of habitat from large distances and from upcurrent of preferred settlement locations. Using in situ choice chambers, we found that settling coral larvae were attracted to reef sounds, produced mainly by fish and crustaceans, which we broadcast underwater using loudspeakers. Our discovery that coral larvae can detect and respond to sound is the first description of an auditory response in the invertebrate phylum Cnidaria, which includes jellyfish, anemones, and hydroids as well as corals. If, like settlement-stage reef fish and crustaceans, coral larvae use reef noise as a cue for orientation, the alleviation of noise pollution in the marine environment may gain further urgency.
