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Back-to-back heatwaves killed 70% of Chagos Islands coral, study shows
Scientists studied reefs in the remote Chagos Archipelago of the British Indian Ocean Territory before and after two ocean heatwaves with unusually high sea temperatures, which came 12 months apart.
Surveying of the seafloor between 2015 and 2017 found that the high sea temperatures led to the loss of 70% of the hard corals, the study published in the journal Coral Reefs suggests.
In 2015, seawater temperatures around reefs in the territory were unusually high for nearly eight weeks, and the seafloor surveys before and after the heatwave saw live healthy coral cover fall by 60%.
Before the corals could recover, they were hit by another ocean heatwave in 2016, lasting for more than four months.
https://www.itv.com/news/2019-07-12/back-to-back-heatwaves-killed-70-of-chagos-islands-coral-study-shows/
Surveying of the seafloor between 2015 and 2017 found that the high sea temperatures led to the loss of 70% of the hard corals, the study published in the journal Coral Reefs suggests.
In 2015, seawater temperatures around reefs in the territory were unusually high for nearly eight weeks, and the seafloor surveys before and after the heatwave saw live healthy coral cover fall by 60%.
Before the corals could recover, they were hit by another ocean heatwave in 2016, lasting for more than four months.
https://www.itv.com/news/2019-07-12/back-to-back-heatwaves-killed-70-of-chagos-islands-coral-study-shows/
And that's apart from the ongoing pressure from ocean acidification.