80% of corals die in the Caribbean

2003/07/21 Elhuyar Zientzia

• Biologia
• Ekologia
• Ingurumena

A study published online in the journal Science reveals that Caribbean Sea reefs have lost 80% of their coral cover over the past three decades.

The research, conducted by UK researchers, has concluded that the surface covered by hard corals has decreased from 50% to 10% since the early 1980s. The greatest losses occurred then, but still today the corals continue to decline, although more slowly. Researchers have been surprised by the rate of losses, higher than that of tropical forests.

The coral reefs of the Caribbean Sea are areas of great biodiversity, of which many people live, both from fishing and from tourism. Both can be causes of loss, pollution, hurricanes or own diseases.

Photo: Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC)