Coral reefs why should we care

When one coral reef becomes too overcome by local stressors, it could affect other coral reefs that are far away. But this connectivity could also save coral reefs: if one coral reef is kept healthy and over time adapts to climate change or other stressor, it could spread those better-adapted traits to other coral reefs through the movement of coral larvae.

The key is keeping coral reefs healthy in the areas where corals are adapting and in the areas where the adapted corals are settling. We Can Save Coral Reefs. Stressed coral turns white, leaving it vulnerable to disease, and if the algae loss occurs over a lengthy period, the reef could eventually die. When the algae disappear, creatures further up the food chain disappear, too. Climate change makes extreme storms and mass bleachings more frequent and more severe, turning some once-flourishing marine environments into underwater deserts.

Warming ocean waters prevent corals laying down their calcium carbonate skeleton, which inhibits the growth essential for a healthy reef ecosystem. Besides climate change, destructive or excessive fishing, coastal development and ocean pollution all add to the threat faced by ocean corals. Their loss would be devastating for the planet, as well as for the communities that rely on coral reefs for employment and tourism.

The long-term solution lies in addressing the underlying causes of climate change - but this is not a quick-fix. She is part of a team trying to uncover the secrets of coral reproduction, which could help regenerate reefs under threat. The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum. What was COP26? How can energy, cities and the natural world save the climate? Just some of the questions answered on World Economic Forum podcasts.

Simon Kofe, Tuvalu's foreign minister, addressed the COP26 climate summit while standing knee-deep in the seawater that threatens to submerge his country. I accept. Take action on UpLink. Forum in focus. The one essential element needed to accelerate action on climate change. Read more about this project. Coral reefs provide an important ecosystem for life underwater, protect coastal areas by reducing the power of waves hitting the coast, and provide a crucial source of income for millions of people.

Coral reefs teem with diverse life. Thousands of species can be found living on one reef. The Great Barrier Reef contains over coral species, 1, fish species, 4, mollusc species and six of the world's seven sea turtle species.

The Coral Triangle - a coral-rich marine region in Southeast Asia that encompasses the waters between Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Papua New Guinea - is the most biologically diverse marine ecosystem on Earth.