Climate change is now recognized as one of the greatest threats to coral reefs worldwide. While a changing climate brings many challenges to coral reefs, one of the most serious and immediate threats is from mass coral bleaching associated with increasing sea temperatures.
Corals bleach when stressed – the symbiotic algae living inside coral tissues are expelled, so the white skeleton becomes visible, and in this weakened condition they may succumb to other threats, and/or to the high temperatures.
See the various aspects of our work on coral bleaching and reef resilience in the links below.
Western Indian Ocean post-bleaching assessment 2017
Coral bleaching in the Indian Ocean
Preparing and responding to coral bleaching
Bleached corals
Degraded/algae-dominated reef
