Coral Reefs

The warming climate has a known bleaching effect on coral reefs. This paper highlights the significant effects of the climate on coral bleaching at deep, mesophotic depths. These bleaching results demonstrate the limitation of deep coral reefs as thermal refuges as the climate continues to warm. The study collected data on the temperature and severity of bleaching at different sites along the Great Barrier Reef and the Western Coral. In 2016, a mass bleaching event in this area caused the death of 30% of shallow-water corals. Results showed more severe bleaching for shallow-water corals in relation to deep corals. Although the severity of bleaching was significantly less for deep corals, the impact is still substantial and is predicted to worsen in the future. This result is devastating because bleaching effects are not only harmful to the coral, but also to all of the millions of animals that depend on the reefs for survival.