According to the latest data provided by Coral Reef Watch and quoted by The Guardian, about 84% of the coral reefs in the globe are affected by the whitening phenomenon, caused by the record increase of temperatures in the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans.
Since January 2023, reefs from 82 countries, which offer shelter for about one third of marine species, have suffered due to the accentuated heating of the waters. Comparatively, 68%of reefs were affected in 2014-2017, in 2010 – 37%, and in 1998 – 21%.
“The fact that such a large number of reef is affected shows that the heating of the oceans has reached a level where there are no safe shelters for corals,” said Derek Manzello, director of the Reef Watch Coral Program.
The phenomenon affects the same regions for years, including the famous Great Barrier Reef reef in Australia, where record levels of thermal stress have recently been recorded. In addition, the Ningaloo reef and coastal areas of Madagascar and East Africa were severely affected, including the South African Park Isimangaliso, registered in the UNESCO World Heritage.
Dr. Britta Schaffelke from the Australian Institute of Marine Sciences has qualified the unprecedented law: “Recipes have not been confronted with such a situation.”
Corals can survive and regenerate after whitening, but only if temperatures return to normal. However, in 2023, the researchers reported that one in five corals died in Florida after whitening, and on the Pacific coast of Mexico, between 50% and 93% of the corals were destroyed in one area.
