Impact of climate change on St. Martin's Island

Coconut trees: Reproductive development of coconut tree is highly sensitive to high temperature and water stress. The fruit set is adversely affected, mainly due to a reduction in pollen viability. The nut development is affected mainly resulting in small number of nuts, empty nuts or elongated nuts. Mangrove forests: Sea level rise will cause a major threat to mangrove ecosystems through sediment erosion, inundation stress and increased salinity at landward zones. These problems will be exacerbated for mangrove stands of this island due to 'coastal squeeze' (landward migration is restricted by smaller size and human settlements). High rainfall and silts being washed down can also affect mangrove growth weakening its resilience. Screw pine (Pandanus): Increasing salinity will cause high mortality of Pandanus trees. The removal of Pandanus trees will enhance beach and dune erosion. Seaweed: Ozone layer depletion will allow a greater amount of ultraviolet rays that can be harmful for seaweeds. UV rays decrease photosynthesis and productivity of seaweeds and directly affect bio-molecules. Sea-algae : 40% algae population may die due to climate change by the end of this century (Muller 2009). Coral: Global climate change poses a high risk to the biodiversity of coral reefs of St. Martin's. The major threats to the coral reefs are high levels of sedimentation, cyclones, storm surges and beach erosion. Global warming is a matter of major concern for coral reefs of this island as elsewhere. The most noticeable damage caused by high sea temperature is coral bleaching. Coral bleaching turns into colourless ugly coral. Coral reefs have already suffered major mortalities as a result of high-temperature events. It is also dependent on a species of algae that lives symbiotically in its body and produces additional food by photosynthesis. When the sea temperature rises above 28°C, the coral expels the algae and consequently it starves. Turtle: Sea-level rise causes erosion of turtle nesting beaches. Higher sand temperature leads to changes in sex ratios or prevent eggs from hatching. Coral reefs are essential feeding habitats of turtles. Coral bleaching destroys the feeding sources of turtles. Huge rainfall can raise ground water tables, thereby flooding nests of turtles. Mollusc: Sea acidification will decline the abundance of mollusc. Crabs and shrimps: Due to sea level rise, the breeding place of crabs and shrimps will be destroyed. Sea fish: Fishes will lose their habitats with coral bleaching and mangrove destruction. Seabirds: High sea temperature will affect seabird foraging success, growth patterns and reproductive potentiality. Coral bleaching increases surface temperature, which decreases breeding and populations of seabirds.