The coral reef is probably the most diverse area in the seas since they allow fishes to live and eat. Due to its natural protection to certain predators, small fishes prefer to lay their eggs on the coral’s surface. In general, its diversity is made because of predator-prey interaction and some mutual interaction such as the fishes and corals. They are thus called the “rainforest” of the seas.

But these homes are slowly dying. Basically, there are two major factors that contribute to the death of coral reefs. Human related activities, such as illegal fishing, excessive exploitation and tourism have a very big impact to their death and the second factor is also made by humans also – global warming.

Global warming is one of the evidence that shows how humans helped make the world hotter and Mother Nature does not like it. It affects every organism that lives in this time, even the ones under the waters.  Coral reefs are affected by this because they are very sensitive to even the slightest change in temperature and pH concentration. Their death is fast and cannot be compensated by their reproduction since even in the normal condition, they reproduce slowly.

There are many effects to the world if the coral reef will be erased entirely. Their very function itself causes extinction to many marine organisms that depend on them for protection and foraging, and followed by the death of those animals that live by feeding on the organism living in the corals. This process is called successive extinction due to the loss of their limited geographic distribution.

Should we wait for that time to come to change what we are doing wrong? By being aware of this, people should take the first move in conservation since we are in top of the hierarchy of species.

The Coral Reef is most likely the place where all types of fishes stay to find their mate or lay eggs. Because of its very diversity, coral reefs are also called the “rainforest” of the ocean. Although these coral reefs account for only about 1% of the world’s ocean, they are home to 25% of life underwater.

But due to a lot of factors including human-related activities and the inevitable warming of the planet, these majestic structures have been slowly dying.

The world’s largest coral reef in Australia, the Great Barrier Reef, has already been affected. Bleaching occurs when algae are forced to leave the polyps during high temperature in the seas. Some bleached corals recover in the next season but most of them die especially when all the algae that live in them are lost.  The magnitude of the damage is not yet confirmed but it is very visible when the reef is seen on top view.

The destruction of these reefs can result to an end to another ecosystem, termed as the DOMINO EFFECT. When this happens, those marine animals that depend on the coral reefs are most likely be wiped out due to predation. There will be an impact to the economy of the countries which depends largely on fishery. Shores will also be damaged and tourism will decline. The balance of nature will be disrupted and extinction of many species will occur.

What is coral bleaching?

One of the most visually dramatic effects of climate change on corals, has been bleaching. When the ocean warms, the oxygen content reduces, and corals become ‘bleached’.

The heat affects the tiny algae which live symbiotically inside the corals and supply them with food. The heat stress damages the algae and in consequence leads to coral death.

Global warming could now mean a death sentence for many coral reefs. If the present rate of destruction continues, most of the world’s coral reefs could be killed within our lifetime.

Coral reefs are extremely important for biodiversity, providing home to over 25% of all the marine life. They provide nurseries for many species of commercially important fish, protection of coastal areas from storm, waves, and are a significant attraction for the tourism industry.

Coral reefs around the world have been severely damaged by unusually warm ocean temperatures.

However, coral reefs are very fragile sensitive ecosystems that can only tolerate a narrow temperature range.

JAKARTA, Aug. 20 (UPI) — A dramatic rise in the surface temperature of Indonesian waters has devastated local coral populations, research shows.

Marine biologists with the Wildlife Conservation Society, in an initial survey of the waters in May, found that more than 60 percent of the coral had “bleached,” which occurs when algae living within coral tissues are expelled.

By August, surveys by researchers from Australia’s James Cook University and Indonesia’s Syiah Kuala University showed 80 percent of those bleached corals had since died.

“It’s a disappointing development, particularly in light of the fact that these same corals proved resilient to other disruptions to this ecosystem, including the Indian Ocean Tsunami of 2004,” said Stuart Campbell, marine program director for the Wildlife Conservation Society of Indonesia.

Sea surface temperatures in the Andaman Sea — an area that includes the coasts of Myanmar, Thailand, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and north western Indonesia — have been on the rise.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Coral Hotspots Web site, air temperatures in the region peaked at 93 degrees Fahrenheit in late May, representing a 7 degree rise over long-term averages for the area.

The coral bleaching is caused by a combination of warmer water and greater exposure to sunlight that is unfiltered by clouds or wind.

The August findings represent “a tragedy not only for some of the world’s most biodiverse coral reefs, but also for people in the region, many of whom are extremely impoverished and depend on these reefs for their food and livelihoods,” Caleb McClennen, marine program director for the society, said in a statement.

“It is another unfortunate reminder that international efforts to curb the causes and effects of climate change must be made if these sensitive ecosystems and the vulnerable human communities around the world that depend on them are to adapt and endure,” he said.

Clive Wilkinson, a coordinator at the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network in Australia, told the Voice of America the bleaching appears to be spreading to Vietnam and Southeast Asia. He warned that it could reach Taiwan and southern Japan very soon.

“We’re sadly quite convinced that this is a climate change event,” Wilkinson said. “What’s happened is that there is far more energy in the atmosphere and in the oceans at the moment because of global warming.”

While coral reefs account for just 1 percent of the world’s ocean surface, they provide a home for 25 percent of all sea life.

Coral reefs are a sight to behold. Great coral reefs in the world, such as the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, Belize Barrier Reef in Mexico, Red Sea Coral Reef in the Middle East and the Tubbataha Reef in the Philippines are testaments to the magnificence of natural underwater treasures.

However, coral reefs are also among the most susceptible to environmental destruction. One challenge for the existence of coral reefs is coral reef bleaching.

Coral bleaching is the whitening or fading of coral colors due to the expulsion of the zooxantheallae, a type of a unicellular algae, from the coral system. The zooxantheallae gives the coral reefs its sparkling, gorgeous colors. The loss of zooxantheallae is a sign that the coral reef is undergoing stress, thus a coral reef bleaching occurs. The bleaching signals that environmental imbalance is going on underwater, and the loss of color is the coral reef’s response to these stressors, or imbalance.

Coral reef bleaching is a result of both pathogenic and anthropogenic (human-induced) factors. Pathogenic infection is caused by the bacteria Vibrio Shiloi which is triggered by a marked increase in temperature. Mostly in the summertime, the bacteria unleash heat-sensitive toxins that attack the zooxanthellae in coral reefs.

Human activities contribute to coral reef bleaching. The two major culprits are global warming that induces high sea surface temperature and the increase in solar irradiance that penetrates bodies of water, producing photosynthetical radiation and ultra-violet (UV) light. The thinning of the Earth’s ozone layer and activities like cutting down of trees and destruction of naturally occurring shades enable too much sunlight to penetrate the depths of oceans and seas. Other causes include too much acidity in the ocean, overfishing that destroys marine food cycle and changes in the salinity of seas and oceans, among others.