http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/earth_climate/coral_reefs/ Coral reef information. Read current news articles on coral reefs in danger due to coral bleaching. See photos of coral reef fish and sponges. Learn about coral reef conservation. en-us Sat, 17 May 2008 11:05:01 EDT Sat, 17 May 2008 11:05:01 EDT 60 http://www.sciencedaily.com/images/logosmall.gif http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/earth_climate/coral_reefs/ For more science articles, visit ScienceDaily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428140002.htm Hurricanes and storms limit the ability of corals in Belize to "recruit" new coral into their communities, according to a new study in Marine Environmental Research. Coral reefs --- which can grow to be thousands of years old --- form and grow when free-swimming coral larvae in the ocean attach to rocks or other hard surfaces and begin to develop. Intense storms can wipe out this "recruitment" process. Tue, 29 Apr 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428140002.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080416165732.htm Scientists have developed a new model that accurately maps where coral reefs are in the most trouble, and identifies regions where reefs can be protected best. The model is being applied in areas throughout the Indian Ocean. Mon, 21 Apr 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080416165732.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080415101021.htm Half a century after the last earth-shattering atomic blast shook the Pacific atoll of Bikini, the corals are flourishing again. Some coral species, however, appear to be locally extinct. One of the most interesting aspects is that the team dived into the vast Bravo Crater left in 1954 by the most powerful American atom bomb ever exploded (15 megatons - a thousand times more powerful than the Hiroshima bomb). The Bravo bomb vaporised three islands, raised water temperatures to 55,000 degrees, shook islands 200 kilometers away and left a crater 2km wide and 73m deep. Wed, 16 Apr 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080415101021.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080401200446.htm Coral reefs could be dying out because of changes to the microbes that live in them just as much as from the direct rise in temperature caused by global warming, according to scientists. Tropical ecosystems are currently balanced on a climate change knife edge. Sat, 05 Apr 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080401200446.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080324091101.htm Over two hundred million humans depend for their subsistence on the fact that coral has an addiction to "junk food" -- and orders its partners, the symbiotic algae, to make it. This curious arrangement is one of nature's most delicate and complex partnerships -- a collaboration now facing grave threats from climate change. Tue, 25 Mar 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080324091101.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080319093118.htm While rabbits continue to ravage Australia's native landscapes, rabbit fish may help save large areas of the Great Barrier Reef from destruction. The reason, say scientists, is the same in both cases -- both rabbits and rabbit fish are efficient herbivores, capable of stripping an area of vegetation. However, in the case of the Reef, it is the vegetation that is the problem -- and the rabbit fish, the answer. Fri, 21 Mar 2008 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080319093118.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080306183149.htm An ocean odor that affects global climate also gathers reef fish to feed as they "eavesdrop" on events that might lead them to food. DMSP is given off by algae and phytoplankton, microscopic one-celled plants that float in the ocean. Release of DMSP usually indicates either that tiny animals in the plankton are feeding on the algae, or that massive growth of algae -- an algal bloom -- has occurred. Once released from the ocean into the atmosphere, derivatives of DMSP promote cloud formation, so clouds reflect more sunlight back into space and cool the Earth. Tue, 11 Mar 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080306183149.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080304101436.htm How well ocean reefs recover from the growing damage caused by warming sea temperatures depends both on how much the tiny coral polyps can eat, and how healthy they can keep the microscopic algae that live inside their bodies. New research may change the way scientists look at this symbiotic partnership, shifting it from a case where the polyps function only as landlords to one where the tiny creatures actually nurture their algae. Fri, 07 Mar 2008 23:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080304101436.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080304101433.htm Bacterial communities endemic to healthy corals could change depending on the amount and type of natural and man-made dissolved organic matter in seawater. Healthy corals naturally exude a surrounding mucous layer in which a complex population of bacteria exists. Recent studies have indicated that some coral diseases may be linked to community shifts in this bacterial population. Fri, 07 Mar 2008 05:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080304101433.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080225213657.htm An ambitious expedition to a chain of little-known islands in the central Pacific Ocean has yielded an unprecedented wealth of information about coral reefs and threats from human activities. The exploration of four atolls in the Line Islands, part of a chain approximately a thousand miles south of Hawaii, has produced the first study of coral reefs comprehensively spanning organisms from microbes to sharks. Thu, 28 Feb 2008 05:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080225213657.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080225072629.htm A beautiful black, white and yellow butterflyfish, much admired by eco-tourists, divers and aquarium keepers alike, may be at risk of extinction, scientists have warned. The case of the chevroned butterfly fish is a stark example of how human pressure on the world's coral reefs is confronting certain species with 'blind alleys' from which they may be unable to escape, says one of the scientists. Mon, 25 Feb 2008 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080225072629.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080214130404.htm New research shows that the second most diverse group of hard corals first evolved in the deep sea, and not in shallow waters. This finding contradicts a long-established theory suggesting that corals evolved in shallow water before migrating into deeper habitats. Radiocarbon dating shows that some species have life spans of over 4,000 years. Tue, 19 Feb 2008 02:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080214130404.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080214080527.htm The small Pacific Island nation of Kiribati has become a global conservation leader by establishing the world's largest marine protected area -- a California-sized ocean wilderness of pristine coral reefs and rich fish populations threatened by over-fishing and climate change. Mon, 18 Feb 2008 08:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080214080527.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080207124628.htm Natural processes may prevent oceans from warming beyond a certain point, helping protect some biologically diverse coral reefs from the impacts of climate change. A new study finds evidence that an ocean "thermostat" is helping regulate sea-surface temperatures. This research lends support to a much-debated theory that a natural ocean thermostat prevents sea-surface temperatures from exceeding about 88 degrees Fahrenheit (31 degrees Celsius) in open oceans. If so, this thermostat would protect reefs that have evolved in naturally warm waters that will not warm much further, as opposed to reefs that live in slightly cooler waters that face more significant warming. Fri, 08 Feb 2008 20:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080207124628.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080201090826.htm Photos and samples taken of coral in the deepest recesses of the Southern Ocean investigated to date off Australia, are expected to yield valuable historical data on climate change. Tue, 05 Feb 2008 23:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080201090826.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080124120725.htm New coral reef maps released by NOAA reveal that the Big Island of Hawaii has the highest percentage of live coral of the main Hawaiian islands. The finding supports studies indicating that geologically young islands such as the Big Island generally have more live coral cover than older islands. "Live coral covers 57 percent, or 29 square miles, of the waters surrounding the Big Island of Hawaii," said an oceanographer with NOAA's Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment. "That is the most live coral coverage of any of the main Hawaiian islands." Wed, 30 Jan 2008 08:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080124120725.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080116105203.htm Scientists will use a kite-like drifting device that allows researchers to detect and quantify the orientation of larval coral reef fish in the pelagic environment. This invention provides a less labor intensive, more precise way of tracking the dispersal of larval and juvenile marine species. Sun, 20 Jan 2008 20:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080116105203.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080114112308.htm Outbreaks of the notorious crown of thorns starfish now threaten the "coral triangle," the richest center of coral reef biodiversity on Earth. The starfish -- a predator that feeds on corals by spreading its stomach over them and using digestive enzymes to liquefy tissue -- were discovered in large numbers by the researchers in reefs in at the heart of the 'Coral Triangle'. Fri, 18 Jan 2008 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080114112308.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080108150436.htm Coral reefs in the Caribbean have suffered significant changes due to the proximal effects of a growing human population. The study showed clearly that the number of people living in close proximity to coral reefs is the main driver of the mortality of corals, loss of fish biomass and increases in macroalgae abundance. Wed, 09 Jan 2008 08:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080108150436.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/12/071213152310.htm Two new species of soft corals were discovered during a recent expedition to Saba Bank, Netherlands Antilles, the largest atoll in the Caribbean. Marine biologists collected 40 species of soft corals and nearly 100 different species of crustaceans in just ten days of SCUBA diving and exploration. One of the likely new species was found in deep water (70 m), and the other, surprisingly, was found to be common in shallow water (20 m). Fri, 21 Dec 2007 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/12/071213152310.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/12/071213152600.htm Major new research indicates that coral reefs won't survive the rapid increases in global temperatures and atmospheric carbon dioxide forecast by the IPCC. The livelihoods of 100 million people living along the coasts of tropical developing countries will be among the first casualties. Marine scientists argue for drastic action by world leaders on carbon dioxide emissions. Immediate use of proven policy and management tools to address over-fishing, pollution and unsustainable coastal development is critical to saving coral reefs. Fri, 14 Dec 2007 20:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/12/071213152600.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071129183829.htm Finally, some good news about the prospects of coral reefs in the age of climate change. According to a new study corals may actually survive rising ocean temperatures in 'tough love' seas with wide-ranging temperatures. Tue, 04 Dec 2007 23:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071129183829.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071115091500.htm In response to the need for efforts to protect and recover surviving populations of the threatened staghorn coral, marine biologists have established an underwater nursery dedicated to the propagation of staghorn corals. The nursery will provide an opportunity to learn about growth and survivorship patterns, as well as how to stabilize corals damaged by natural disturbances or human activity. Tue, 20 Nov 2007 02:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071115091500.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071112105938.htm Coral extinction could mean a worldwide catastrophe impacting all marine and terrestrial life. Environmental stress is damaging the symbiotic relationship between soft corals and the microscopic symbiotic algae living in their tissues. There is no doubt that global warming is to blame, warns a prominent marine biologist, explaining that this symbiotic relationship is key for the survival of most soft corals. Tue, 13 Nov 2007 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071112105938.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071031152950.htm There is a new development in a major debate over a controversial hypothesis of biodiversity and species abundance. Ecologists are reporting good agreement between the species richness of two of the most vulnerable ecosystems -- tropical forests and coral reefs -- and a simple mathematical model building on the "neutral theory of biodiversity." The research could aid the effort to protect terrestrial biodiversity from climate change and urban development. Tue, 06 Nov 2007 23:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071031152950.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071031112907.htm Coral reefs could be damaged beyond repair, unless we change the way we manage the marine environment. New research shows how damaged Caribbean reefs will continue to decline over the next 50 years. Coral reefs conjure up images of rich, colorful ecosystems yet an increasing number of reefs are becoming unhealthy and overrun by seaweed. Mon, 05 Nov 2007 02:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071031112907.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071019093814.htm Researchers have discovered what could be the aphrodisiac for the biggest moonlight sex event on Earth. An ancient light-sensitive gene has been isolated that appears to act as a trigger for the annual mass spawning of corals across a third of a million square kilometres of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, shortly after a full moon. The genes occur in corals, insects, fish and mammals - including humans - and are primitive light-sensing pigment mechanisms which predate the evolution of eyes. Mon, 22 Oct 2007 23:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071019093814.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071021225256.htm The world has a narrow window of opportunity to save coral reefs from the destruction caused by extreme climate change, according to a unanimous statement issued today by leading Australian scientists. The call for action is the outcome of a National Forum on Coral Reef Futures, held at the Australian Academy of Sciences, in Canberra. Mon, 22 Oct 2007 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071021225256.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071020090707.htm The latest research into the scale, causes and consequences of global loss of coastal habitats has recently been presented. The disappearance of these ecosystems, which include coral reefs, mangrove forests, wetlands and seagrass meadows, has serious consequences like loss of biodiversity, depletion of exploitable living resources, impaired capacity of the oceans to sequester carbon dioxide and loss of the leisure value of the coastal zone. Not only that, the coastline becomes more vulnerable to the increased erosion associated with rising sea levels. Sun, 21 Oct 2007 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071020090707.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071017102133.htm The world's oceans are becoming more acid, with potentially devastating consequences for corals and the marine organisms that build reefs and provide much of Earth's breathable oxygen. The acidity is caused by the gradual buildup of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, dissolving into the oceans. Scientists fear it could be lethal for animals with chalky skeletons which make up more than a third of the planet's marine life. Fri, 19 Oct 2007 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071017102133.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071014201814.htm Reef fish and other marine species can breathe easier with the introduction of a fishing ban around Apo Reef, the largest coral reef in the Philippines and the second largest contiguous reef in the world after the Great Barrier Reef. Under the ban, all extractive activities, such as fishing, and coral collection and harvesting, will be completely forbidden. Thu, 18 Oct 2007 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071014201814.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/09/070926150518.htm The Smithsonian's National Zoo recently acquired 12,000 new animals -- microscopic Elkhorn coral larvae harvested by National Zoo scientists in Puerto Rico -- as part of an international collaborative program to raise the threatened species. National Zoo scientists hope to one day return the animals, once they are grown, to their wild ocean habitat. Tue, 02 Oct 2007 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/09/070926150518.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/09/070917190303.htm Scientists and educators from NOAA's National Marine Sanctuary Program embarked on a nine-day mission to the world's only undersea scientific facility on Sept. 17. While living underwater in the Aquarius ocean laboratory, scientists will investigate changes to corals and marine life in Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary and broadcast their activities in real time to students and general audiences via the OceansLive.org education Web portal. Tue, 18 Sep 2007 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/09/070917190303.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/09/070905123839.htm A grouper fish found off New Caledonia was found to be parasitized by 12 species of microscopic monogenean worms. This diversity of parasites has just been confirmed also in the malabar grouper, another the coral reef species. If such a level of parasite diversity prevails in all coral-reef fish, tens of thousands of parasite species are in this ecosystem waiting to be discovered. Thu, 13 Sep 2007 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/09/070905123839.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070830165013.htm A team of coral researchers has taken a major stride towards revealing the workings of the mysterious 'engine' that drives Australia's Great Barrier Reef, and corals the world over. The science has critical importance in understanding why coral reefs bleach and die, how they respond to climate change -- and how that might affect humanity, they say. Fri, 31 Aug 2007 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070830165013.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070822143206.htm A modest new lab at the Rosenstiel School is the first of its kind to tackle the global problem of climate change impacts on corals. Fully operational this month, this new lab has begun to study how corals respond to the combined stress of greenhouse warming and ocean acidification. The lab is the first to maintain corals under precisely controlled temperature and carbon dioxide conditions while exposing them to natural light conditions. Thu, 23 Aug 2007 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070822143206.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070815102002.htm One of Australia's greatest conservation challenges in protecting the Great Barrier Reef and other natural assets is staying one jump ahead of both the movement of protected species and the emergence of new and unforeseen threats. Scientists are now working out ways to give local communities as well as conservation managers the means to do this. Mon, 20 Aug 2007 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070815102002.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070811212006.htm Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are often hailed as a way to halt serious declines in the abundance of marine species that have been over-fished. But even as nations begin to set aside protected parcels of ocean for marine reserves, the effectiveness of the approach as a fisheries management tool remains unclear. Fish ecologist are now ready to put MPAs to the test with a novel technique for tagging fish. Mon, 13 Aug 2007 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070811212006.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070809104722.htm Approximately 250 million years ago, vast numbers of species disappeared from Earth. This mass-extinction event may hold clues to current global carbon cycle changes, according to researchers. Fri, 10 Aug 2007 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070809104722.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070808082051.htm Corals in the central and western Pacific ocean are dying faster than previously thought, researchers have found. Nearly 600 square miles of reef have disappeared per year since the late 1960s, twice the rate of rainforest loss. Thu, 09 Aug 2007 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070808082051.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070730173355.htm Scientists have discovered large colonies of glass sponges thriving on the seafloor 30 miles off the coast of Washington. The species of glass sponges capable of building reefs were thought extinct for 100 million years until they were found in recent years in protected Canadian waters, the only place in the world they've been observed until now. The discovery in Washington waters extends the range of reef-building glass sponges into open ocean. Fri, 03 Aug 2007 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070730173355.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070730172426.htm In a setback for efforts to protect endangered coral reefs from oil spills, researchers report that oil dispersants -- the best tool for treating oil spills in tropical areas --are significantly more toxic to coral than the oil they are used to clean up. Tue, 31 Jul 2007 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070730172426.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070712135148.htm In the longest running study on how fish populations in coral reef systems recover from heavy exploitation, researchers have found that the fish can recover, but they need lots of time -- decades in some cases. Fri, 13 Jul 2007 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070712135148.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070704144853.htm In a paper published in scientific journal Marine Biology, Dr. Ken Anthony and Dr. Ailsa Kerswell, of the ARC Center of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies at the University of Queensland and James Cook University have revealed that extreme low tides on clear sunny days can lead to widespread damage of coastal coral colonies. Fri, 06 Jul 2007 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070704144853.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/06/070607070826.htm Caribbean coral species are dying off, indicating dramatic shifts in the ecological balance under the sea, a new scientific study of Caribbean marine life shows. The study found that 10 percent of the Caribbean's 62 reef-building corals were under threat, including staghorn and elkhorn corals. These used to be the most prominent species but are now candidates to be listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Mon, 11 Jun 2007 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/06/070607070826.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/05/070516095219.htm Increasing Earth temperatures and rising sea levels. Both of these are effects of climate change. The current concern is that human activity is changing our climate at a rate well above the natural climate cycling. Understanding how the Earth's climate system works and responds to human impact is therefore of uttermost importance. Tue, 22 May 2007 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/05/070516095219.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/05/070515151135.htm Coral reef bleaching, believed to be one of the detrimental effects of climate change, may receive a welcomed "buffer" through effective local management, according to scientists who are recording the long-term recovery of coral reefs. Wed, 16 May 2007 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/05/070515151135.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/05/070515074933.htm Marine reserves have already proved to be a successful way of protecting marine life against commercial fishing. New research shows for the first time how marine reserves could also help in the recovery of corals, which are already suffering the effects of climate change and over-fishing. Wed, 16 May 2007 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/05/070515074933.htm