Many #CoralReefs are dying. This one is exploding with life.

Scientists recently observed a rare phenomenon on a reef in #Cambodia that left them in awe — and filled them with hope.

By Benji Jones@BenjiSJones Mar 14, 2024

"Globally, coral reefs, which underpin commercial fisheries and protect coastlines from storms, have declined by half since the 1950s, largely due to #ClimateChange. Spells of extreme #MarineHeat break down the relationship between #coral and a type of symbiotic #algae that gives it both food and its vibrant colors. The coral turns white — a process referred to as #bleaching — and can then easily starve to death.

"The reefs in Cambodia and in the broader #EastAsian region, however, appear to be bucking this trend. Surveys indicate that they haven’t declined in recent decades, perhaps because they’re more resilient to warming. Their secret to survival may ultimately help safeguard ailing reefs elsewhere."

Read more:
https://www.vox.com/down-to-earth/24098428/scientists-ocean-coral-spawning-bleaching-great-barrier-reef

#Environment #WaterIsLife
#PacificOcean #DeepSeaEcosystems #NoDumping #CoralReef

#Canada moves to protect #CoralReef that scientists say ‘shouldn’t exist’

Discovery was made after #FirstNations tipped off #ecologists about groups of fish gathering in a fjord off #BritishColumbia

by Leyland Cecco in Toronto
Fri 15 Mar 2024

"On the last of nearly 20 dives, the team made a startling discovery – one that has only recently been made public.

"'When we started to see the living corals, everyone was in doubt,' says Cherisse Du Preez, head of the deep-sea ecology program at Fisheries and Oceans Canada. 'Then, when we saw the expansive fields of coral in front of us, everybody just let loose. There were a lot of pure human emotions.'

"Despite existing in absolute darkness, the lights of the submersible captured the rich pinks, yellows and purples of the #corals and #sponges.

"The following year, the team mapped #LopheliaReef, or #q̓áuc̓íwísuxv, as it has been named by the #Kitasoo Xai’xais and #Heiltsuk First Nations. It is the country’s only known living coral reef.

"The discovery marks the latest in a string of instances in which Indigenous knowledge has directed researchers to areas of scientific or historic importance. More than a decade ago, #Inuk oral historian Louie Kamookak compared #Inuit stories with explorers’ logbooks and journals to help locate Sir John Franklin’s lost ships, HMS Erebus and HMS Terror. In 2014, divers located the wreck of the Erebus in a spot Kamookak suggested they search, and using his directions found the Terror two years later."

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/mar/15/canada-moves-to-protect-coral-reef-that-scientists-say-shouldnt-exist

#IndigenousWisdom #Environment #WaterIsLife #PacificOcean #DeepSeaEcosystems #NoDumping