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Reefs collapse across Caribbean, study says
Researchers cite climate change in rapid and devastating decline
By Mark Hume
Vancouver — From Wednesday’s Globe and Mail, Wednesday, Jun. 10, 2009 07:52AM EDT
There has been a massive collapse of coral reefs throughout the Caribbean, according to a joint project by researchers from Simon Fraser University and the University of East Anglia in Norwich, England.
The study has found that not only are reefs dying faster and on a wider scale than previously thought, but they are quickly crumbling after they die, in a process scientists call “reef flattening.”
The scale of the collapse is massive.
“Probably the most stark finding of our result is that this isn’t just a flattening in one patch, one area the size of Vancouver, or even an area the size of British Columbia… the whole Caribbean has been flattened in the past decade, mainly as a result of climate change,” said Nicholas Dulvy of SFU’s department of biological sciences. “There are no detectable complex reefs [left].”
Please click here for the rest of this very informative article.
For more information read the June 11, 2009 article on the Discover Magazine Blog 80 Beats: Climate Change & Disease Have “Flattened” Caribbean Coral Reefs and in Science Daily online on June 9: Caribbean Reefs Flattened
Editor’s note: Anyone who dove in Caribbean waters before this process of decay began and experienced the indescribable and mysterious beauty of the coral reefs as they once were cannot help but be heartbroken by this news. Never again the great staghorn coral, the graceful sea-fans waving in gentle currents, the incessant clicking of the parrot fish teeth as these bright creatures munched on the coral beds, the miriads of brilliantly coloured, fantastical little fish which made the elaborate structures of coral their home. And for we humans, the profound sense of peace we felt in being privileged to experience this lovely world. All of this now, gone.
We must hope that some time in distant future, after we have brought carbon dioxide levels down to a safe level and restored our oceans to their normal PH level, that coral reefs will begin to rebuild. We only wish we could be here to see this happen.
I had the exact experience as described by the Editor. About 10 years ago I went snorkeling at St. John and was absolutely overwhelmed by the colors in the reefs. Last spring I returned and everything was grey. Heartbreaking? I call it soul-crushing. Terrible, terrible news.