Despite 15 years of concerted action by the Australian and Queensland governments the health of the reef is not improving and in fact may be continuing to deteriorate.
Soon the oceans will be too warm to support thriving coral reefs.
USFWS - Pacific Region/Flickr
With the United Nations set to decide on whether to list the Great Barrier Reef as officially in danger, we look at the various threats to the reef’s survival, starting with the biggie… climate change.
Give up, brain coral, we have you surrounded.
Joseph Pawlik, UNCW
Warmer temperatures can throw off the gender balance in some species. But some fish can adjust their offspring’s gender to compensate, but only if temperatures don’t rise too high.
The World Heritage Committee has called for a comprehensive assessment not just of the threats to the Great Barrier Reef, but of their cumulative effect.
AAP Image/Australian Institute for Marine Science, Ray Berkelmans
The government says it has met all of the recommendations for safeguarding the Great Barrier Reef. But a close reading of the dozens of UN recommendations shows that many have been only partly fulfilled.
There are more and bigger coral trout in parts of the Great Barrier Reef closed to fishing.
AIMS LTMP
Fishing is a major threat to the Great Barrier Reef, but new research shows that areas closed to fishing just over a decade ago are home to bigger and more fish.
Coral reefs, the rain forests of the sea.
Brian Zgliczynski
A new ecology study doesn’t focus on how people degrade the environment. Instead, it untangles the way physical factors in a pristine ecosystem drive the biology of what lives there.
Kelp covered landscape in Western Australia.
Dan Smale
Thomas Wernberg, The University of Western Australia and Dan Smale, Marine Biological Association
Western Australia’s marine environment is unique. Two world heritage areas, the largest fringing coral reef in Australia, and more than a thousand kilometres of underwater forests, supporting incredible…
The stunning colours of coral attract many divers to the world’s reefs but, for us coral scientists, one mystery has always remained. Swimming over a reef, you can frequently spot brightly coloured coral…
During an outbreak, crown-of-thorns starfish can number in the millions and decimate coral reefs.
Australian Institute of Marine Science/AAP
Mike Hall, Australian Institute of Marine Science and Scott Cummins, University of the Sunshine Coast
Crown-of-thorns starfish are one of the biggest threats to the Great Barrier Reef. Since 1985, the Great Barrier Reef has lost half its coral cover, with almost half of this coral loss due to the crown-of-thorns…
Looks healthy, but still lacks the big predatory fish… how would it rate on the index?
AF Johnson
We know that fishing has significant impacts on our oceans and the animals that live in them. Effects can range from habitat modification caused by bottom trawls, stock declines from overfishing or subtler…
After mass bleaching in 1998, more than half of coral reefs in the Seychelles have slowly recovered.
Nick Graham
Coral reefs are the poster child for the damage people are doing to the world’s oceans. Overfishing, pollution and declining water quality have all taken their toll on reefs around the world. Perhaps the…
Coral reefs are like an underwater metropolis – and function in similar ways.
Simon Gingins
Consensus is growing that we are steering towards a sixth mass extinction event. There are calls for increased efforts to stop the accelerating loss of plants and animals. But do we really need to protect…
Flying over Green Island on the Great Barrier Reef.
Kiyo/Flickr
The Great Barrier Reef is in trouble, and a draft government plan to ensure its survival does not go far enough. A number of submissions including those from the Australian Academy of Science and Environmental…
A great butterfly fish enjoys the reef view off Waialae, Hawaii.
Steve Palumbi
Reef historian Iain McCalman, in Sydney, and reef scientist Stephen Palumbi, in California, are monitoring reef degradation from opposite sides of the planet. They compared notes. Iain McCalman: A recent…
Diseases can devastate coral reefs.
Jorge H. Pinzón C.
The incredible diversity of coral reef ecosystems is being threatened by factors associated with global climate change and local pollution. Today diseases have increased and are killing more corals. Seeing…