Dead zones may threaten coral reefs worldwide

Dead zones affect dozens of coral reefs around the world and threaten hundreds more according to a new study. Watching a massive coral reef die-off on the Caribbean coast of Panama, they suspected it was caused by a dead zone – a low-oxygen area that snuffs out marine life – rather than by ocean warming or acidification.

50 Reefs Initiative Is Good News For Coral Reefs

Coral reefs are in crisis. The facts are clear: without a different approach to conservation, coral reefs will continue to decline toward extinction. However, an announcement last week in Bali, Indonesia gave us some new reasons to be hopeful.

Japan’s Largest Coral Reef Is Dying

More than 90 percent of the corals in Sekiseishoko reef, located in the Ryukyu Islands near Okinawa, were discovered to be at least partially bleached when surveyed in November and December. About 70 percent of the reef’s living corals were found to have died.

Video Captures the Violent Act of Coral Bleaching

The video revealed for the first time how the mushroom coral Heliofungia actiniformis, which is a single polyp, physically reacts to heat stress. The results gave scientists more information about how corals will respond to warming seas that are associated with climate change.

A New View of Coral Reefs; Video

NASA’s Coral Reef Airborne Laboratory (CORAL) has studied the Great Barrier Reef off the coast of Australia and has several other targets planned.