MAJOR CORAL BLEACHING EVENT EXPANDS ACROSS CARIBBEAN, SEVERE IN PUERTO RIC [View All]

http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2005/s2526.htm

MAJOR CORAL BLEACHING EVENT EXPANDS ACROSS CARIBBEAN, SEVERE IN PUERTO RICO AND U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS
NOAA's New Coral Reef Watch Satellite Bleaching Alerts Aiding Managers

Oct. 25, 2005 — NOAA reports that a major coral bleaching event is underway in the Caribbean and may result in significant coral death in much of the region. Currently, the bleaching is centered in waters adjacent to the U.S. Virgin Islands. Reports of bleaching have come in from the Florida Keys and Texas' Flower Garden Banks in the north, to Tobago and Barbados in the southern Antilles, to Panama and Costa Rica in the west. (Click NOAA satellite image for larger view of the regions of high thermal stress as of Oct. 25, 2005, from NOAA's Degree Heating Week (DHW) satellite-based product that accumulates high temperature events. Please credit “NOAA.”)

Warnings of the onset of this event were first reported by the NOAA Coral Reef Watch Satellite Bleaching Alert monitoring system. Bleaching was first seen in late August in the Florida Keys and has now spread throughout much of the eastern Caribbean.

Coral bleaching is associated with a variety of stresses, including increased sea surface temperatures. This causes the coral to expel symbiotic micro-algae living in their tissues—algae that provide corals with food. Losing their algae leaves coral tissues devoid of color, and thus appearing to be bleached. Prolonged coral bleaching (over a week) can lead to coral death and the subsequent loss of coral reef habitats for a range of marine life.

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scary stuff!