Atolls have a long and complex history related to seafloor evolution, and Darwin’s model is only the beginning of the story.
coral reefs
Posted inNews
Climate Change May Shift Coral Population Dynamics
New paleoceanographic research indicates that warming waters may contribute to fewer coral reefs but to a flourishing presence of soft-bodied corals.
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Scientists Support Local Activities to Rescue the Mesoamerican Reef
The reef’s report card analyzed 286 sites in Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, and Honduras. Communities, scientists, and governments are working to improve coral and ecosystem resilience.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Corals Make Reliable Recorders of El Niño Fluctuations
A new tool that reconciles modeling and paleoclimate data builds confidence that tropical Pacific corals reliably archive natural variability in the El Niño–Southern Oscillation climate pattern.
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A Brighter Future for Coral Reef Islands
Although some islands demonstrate more resiliency than previously thought, island communities may require significant flood-resistant infrastructure to maintain their way of life.
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Dead Reefs Keep Calcifying but Only by Day
A new measurement technique has revealed that turf algae communities colonizing dead reefs have a dual role, adding new mineral material to the reefs during the day and taking it away at night.
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A Key to Coral Bleaching Events? Location, Location, Location
New research indicates that longitude, as well as warming waters, may be a key predictor of coral bleaching events.
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Tropical Corals Are Migrating Away from Warming Waters
In the first global assessment of its kind, researchers discovered that coral recruitment is declining globally and throughout the tropics while increasing in the subtropics.
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Report Examines New Tools to Protect Coral Reefs
Coral reefs face threats including habitat destruction, pollution, and climate change. A novel set of interventions could help them persist in rapidly degrading environmental conditions.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
The Effect of Coral Bleaching Events in the Great Barrier Reef
A new study using seawater chemistry compares the status of the iconic reef before and after a bleaching event.