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Hurricanes are bad, right? Well yes, they are. Very bad. But as Derek P. Manzello, a University of Miami researcher, and colleagues report, in one way at least they can be a force for good. They can benefit bleached coral reefs. Bleaching, the loss of symbiotic algae from the coral animals, occurs when a reef is stressed, most commonly by warmer-than-normal water. Because algae provide most of the corals’ food, bleaching can lead to the death of a reef, unless the water temperature returns to normal and algae can repopulate the coral. That’s where hurricanes come in. Their intense winds...

The force of this week's Solomons earthquake has lifted an island in the South Pacific archipelago and pushed out its shoreline by tens of metres, exposing surrounding reefs. The remote island of Ranongga in the western Solomon Islands used to have submerged coral reefs that attracted scuba divers from around the world. But since Monday's massive earthquake in the Solomon Islands, the reefs are now exposed above the water and are dying, an AFP reporter and photographer have seen. The AFP team, which travelled to Ranongga on a chartered outboard after the quake, saw exposed reefs bleaching in the sun,...

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - Unusually warm waters are bleaching coral reefs throughout the Caribbean, raising fears of a die-off of the important organisms, scientists and environmentalists said Wednesday. Ocean temperatures have been slowly rising, threatening sea coral that can only live within a narrow temperature band, according to the experts. A slight increase in temperature can induce coral bleaching and eventually kill the coral. Recent data gathered by the University of Puerto Rico shows that up to 95 percent of coral colonies off the island have had some bleaching. "The concern is that we may be witnessing a massive...

Reef Madness By Marlo Lewis Now that Russia has ratified the Kyoto Protocol, Australia is the only industrialized country besides the United States to reject the U.N.-sponsored climate treaty. However, a report commissioned by Australian affiliates of World Wildlife Fund and Greenpeace denies that Australia has any choice in the matter. The report, prepared by the Sydney Centre for International and Global Law, contends that the World Heritage Convention, a treaty administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), obligates Australia to ratify the Kyoto Protocol and, thus, limit its emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG), chiefly carbon...

When Nerilie Abram first arrived at the Mentawai Islands southwest of Sumatra in 2000, she was expecting to find a thriving coral reef and its ecosystem. Instead, she and her co-workers found dead coral with no fish. Local people told Abram that the coral began to die in 1997, an El Niño year, when an algal bloom had smothered the reef. But the upwelling warm water from El Niño alone was not strong enough to create the bloom, Abram says. And evidence from coral cores showed the reef had survived even stronger upwellings. “So we looked for a stronger nutrient...

Source: University Of Florida Date: 2003-08-18 Coral Reefs' Decline Actually Began Centuries Ago, New Research Shows GAINESVILLE, Fla. --- Global warming and pollution are among the modern-day threats commonly blamed for decline of coral reefs, but new research shows the downfall of those resplendent and diverse signatures of tropical oceans actually may have begun centuries ago. According to a paper set to appear Friday (8/15) in the journal Science, the downward spiral started when people first began killing off reef-frequenting large fish, turtles, seals and other top predators or herbivores – a process that started thousands of years ago in...

Report: Coral Reefs Dying OffPollution, overfishing and climate change have severely damaged one-third of the world's coral reefs and could destroy another third in the next 30 years, scientists warned Thursday. "There are no pristine reefs left," the researchers reported in the journal Science. They predicted that without "radical changes" in efforts to save the world's reefs, "close to 60 percent of them could be lost by 2030." The report -- based on hundreds of historical documents, fishing records and scientific studies using sources as diverse as early ship's logs to modern environmental surveys -- is the most comprehensive...

Scientists find giant new coral reef off AustraliaSYDNEY (AFP) Jun 10, 2003 Australian scientists announced Tuesday the discovery of a large new coral reef off the country's northern coast in waters previously thought too warm to support such marine life. A team from Geoscience Australia found the reef covering about 100 square kilometers in the Gulf of Carpentaria north of Queensland state last month, they said. Chief scientist Peter Harris said his team had found two new types of reef during a month-long expedition initially aimed at researching the movement of sand from rivers entering the gulf. "Surprisingly we...

WASHINGTON (AP)--Vast coral reefs, sea grass meadows and mangrove forests in ocean waters off the Florida Keys are being designated as especially sensitive by the U.S. government. The United States' first Particularly Sensitive Sea Area--just the fifth such domain worldwide to gain special protection in accordance with the International Maritime Organization--is being created in the Florida Straits, where U.S. officials say more than 40 percent of the world's commerce passes each year. Bush administration officials announced Wednesday the creation of the new protective zone in the Florida Keys, which is part of the world's third largest barrier reef ecosystem and...

All U.S. Coral Reefs Face Human Threats SILVER SPRING, Maryland, September 30, 2002 (ENS) - Every U.S. coral reef system is suffering from both human and natural disturbances, warns a new report from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The first national assessment of the condition of U.S. coral reefs links development, pollution and destructive fishing practices with the decline of reefs in U.S. waters and around the globe. The 265 page report, "The State of Coral Reef Ecosystems of the United States and Pacific Freely Associated States," identifies the pressures that pose increasing risks to the nation's estimated...

Malaysia launches coral reef conservation project KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia launched a project yesterday to assess the state of the coral reefs dotting the peninsula's east coast, teaming up with a British environmental group to survey the Perhentian island group near Thailand. A three-month pilot phase, due to start in September, will see local and paying international volunteers plot the state of plant and animal life on and around the Perhentian islands, a popular spot for divers, backpackers and local tourists. Their data should help inform policies to stop more damage to reefs in Malaysia, home to some of...

$5.5 Million Available for Coral Conservation WASHINGTON, DC, May 16, 2002 (ENS) - The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is seeking proposals for coral reef conservation projects in the U.S. and around the world. About $5.5 million, including $5.15 million from NOAA and $350,000 from the Department of Interior, may be available through NOAA's Coral Reef Conservation Grant Program, as authorized by the Coral Reef Conservation Act of 2000. "Providing grant funds to state and local entities to conserve coral reefs is an essential part of the federal government's overall strategy to protect and restore these precious marine...