New paper out: Rhodoliths are not affected by sunscreen pollution

We have a new paper out in Marine Pollution Bulletin today showing no effect of the common organic sunscreen filter, benzophenone-3 (BP-3) on the photophysiology of calcified red algae in the Gulf of Mexico. Coralline red algae provide important ecosystem services globally, including cemeting together coral heads on reefs.

This work was led by a wonderful team of undergraduate researchers, Ali MacVicar, Sara Stoppelmann, and Troy Broomes, during summer 2019. Check out the paper, linked below!

MacVicar, A, SJ Stoppelmann, TJ Broomes and SJ McCoy (2022). Gulf of Mexico rhodoliths are robust to sunscreen pollution. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 181: 113864. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.113864 [link]