Dozens of reefs around the world have bleached in the past three years, of which the Great Barrier Reef was merely the most high-profile.
AAP Image/WWF AUSTRALIA, BIOPIXEL
Amid fears for the world's coral reefs, the UN World Heritage Committee has issued its most wide-ranging statement so far on protecting heritage sites from climate. But the problem doesn't end there.
The Great Barrier Reef is reeling under a combination of bleaching, over-fishing and land clearing.
AP Image/Bette Willis
Cuban and US scientists are forming partnerships to protect coral reefs and fisheries in both countries. But President Trump may soon announce steps to slow or reverse the US opening to Cuba.
The southern Great Barrier Reef escaped both of the recent mass bleaching events. But time is running out.
AAP Image/ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, Tory Chase
Tropical coral reefs can be saved from climate change and other pressures, but the window of opportunity is closing. And reefs are guaranteed to be markedly different in the future.
A typical reef scene within the Chagos Archipelago.
The government's latest report to UNESCO on the Great Barrier Reef paints a rosy picture.
Whitespotted surgeonfish (Acanthurus guttatus), found in the Indo-Pacific, crop the upper portion of algae while feeding, preventing macroalgae from becoming established on reefs.
Kevin Lino/NOAA
Plant-eating fish control the spread of seaweed and algae on coral reefs. New research explaining why populations of these fish vary from site to site could lead to better reef protection strategies.
Coral reefs in Australia’s northwest have experienced severe bleaching and coral mortality in 2016.
Steeve Comeau
The oceans are filled with sounds produced by animals. However, a recent study shows that ocean sounds are diminishing due to nutrient pollution and ocean acidification.
Sometimes it pays to look on the bright side.
Tane Sinclair-Taylor
Not all of the world's coral reefs are in dire straits. Reef fisheries tend to do better in areas with strong ownership rights, and where people are closely involved in managing their local reefs.
Fluorescent image of the coral Pocillopora damicornis. The field of view is approximately 4.1 x 3.4 mm.
Andrew D. Mullen/UCSD
A new study provides insight into coral-dwelling microbial communities and how they react to pollution, overfishing, and climate change. What does it mean for the Great Barrier Reef?
Nice to see you: parrotfishes prey on seaweed, which consume seaweeds that can outcompete, smother or even poison corals.
Corinne Fuchs
A combination of factors – pollution, disease and overfishing – is harming corals but scientists have found clues to effective treatment by studying corals' microbiome.
Nemo is actually a ‘false clownfish’.
Motoya Kawasaki/Flickr
