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Warmer water temperatures can result in coral bleaching. When water is too warm, corals will expel the algae (zooxanthellae) living in their tissues causing the coral to turn completely white.
Climate change is the greatest global threat to coral reef ecosystems. Scientific evidence now clearly indicates that the Earth's atmosphere and ocean are warming, and that these changes are primarily due to greenhouse gases derived from human activities.
Today we will explore ocean acidification and coral bleaching. A special welcome today to Jennifer Koss, the Acting Director for NOAA’s Coral Reef Conservation Program, and Mark Eakin, the Coordinator for NOAA’s Coral Reef Watch.
Climate change and ocean acidification can result in mass coral bleaching events, increased susceptibility to disease, slower growth and reproductive rates, and degraded reef structure.
When temperatures rise, coral bleaching can occur. In this episode, we explore what happens during bleaching events, how corals are affected, and how we can help protect these important ecosystems.
As human population and development expands in coastal areas, the landscape is altered, increasing land-based sources of pollution and threatening coral reef health.
For over 20 years, NOAA’s Coral Reef Watch has used remote sensing, modeling and on site data to study coral reef ecosystems worldwide. Coral Reef Watch provides the only global early-warning system of changes to coral reef environments, allowing NOAA to predict coral bleaching events.
noaa.gov DownloadThis tutorial is an overview of the biology of and threats to coral reefs, as well as efforts being made to conserve and protect them. It includes images, animations, and videos.
Today, we’ll talk about coral bleaching. In December 2014, I was joined by Jennifer Koss, the Acting Director for the NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program and Mark Eakin, the coordinator for NOAA’s Coral Reef Watch, to discuss coral bleaching.
Pollution, overfishing, destructive fishing practices using dynamite or cyanide, collecting live corals for the aquarium market and mining coral for building materials are some of the many ways that people damage reefs all around the world every day.