Reef atmosphere & parasite infections
From Lost in Science by Chris Lassig, Stuart Burns, Claire Farrugia and Linden Ashcroft.
February 25, 2026
About this episode
Linden discusses the impact of atmospheric changes on coral with Rob Ryan and Stu shares insights on recent parasite research.
This week, Linden talks to atmospheric chemist Rob Ryan about the effect on coral of changes in the air over the Great Barrier Reef; and Stu updates us on some recent findings on parasites, including a self-experiment from a researcher’s encounter with a sand flea (Tunga penetrans).
People in this episode
Host: Stu
Guest: Rob Ryan
Topics covered
- coral
- atmospheric chemistry
- parasites
- sand flea
Keywords
- Great Barrier Reef
- Tunga penetrans
- self-experiment
Mentioned in this episode
Places: the Great Barrier Reef
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