Following the grim path of the rain forests and the Arctic, coral reefs are becoming the latest victim of the modern human plagues of pollution, over-harvesting and climate change, according to a massive survey of these sensitive ocean gardens.
Key species of fish, shrimp and lobster are missing from the majority of the reefs that were studied as fishermen pour cyanide and blast dynamite within the antler-like branches of many coral heads to collect seafood.
At the same time, polluted runoff from coastal communities is providing a continual stream of fertilizer onto many reefs, feeding species of large and fleshy algae that choke off growth of the type of hard, stony corals that make up the foundation of the reefs, according to the study by Reef Check, a monitoring program based at UCLA's Institute of the Environment.
The study, involving more than 5,000 scientists and divers who over the course of five years tracked the transformation of coral reefs in 55 countries, found only one reef out of more than 1,100 that was judged to be in near-pristine condition.
"Coral reefs have suffered more damage over the last 20 years than they have in the last 1,000," said Gregor Hodgson, a visiting UCLA professor who heads Reef Check and is the author of the report. "It is the rate of decline and the global extent of the damage that is so alarming, with species reasonably abundant 30 years ago now on the verge of extinction."
The growing destruction of these fragile yet bony ecosystems, often called the rain forests of the oceans, has alarmed scientists because coral reefs account for 25% of all marine fish species and provide food for 350 million people, mostly in developing nations, Hodgson said.
Although reefs make up just one-tenth of 1% of the world's ocean area, authors of the study called them a key indicator of the health of the world's oceans.
Moreover, the rocky, physical structure of reefs provides crucial protection for many coastal regions from the severity of storms, and their continual growth and erosion replenish the white-sand beaches so prized in the multibillion-dollar tourist industry, often the major source of income in poor tropical nations.
Coral reefs are fertile breeding grounds for marine life. If it were not for insects in rain forests, reefs would have the highest species diversity of any habitat in the world.
