Caribbean Reefs Have Lost 48% Of Hard Corals Since 1980; 2023-24 Heatwave "Most Destructive Ever" In Region

[hatrack]

Caribbean reefs have half as much hard coral now as they did in 1980, a study has found. The 48% decrease in coral cover has been driven by climate breakdown, specifically marine heatwaves. They affect the microalgae that feed coral, making them toxic and forcing the coral to expel them.

In 2023-24, the region’s coral experienced “the most destructive thermal stress ever recorded”, said Dr Jérémy Wicquart of the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network, one of the study’s editors. It caused a 16.9% decrease in cover year-on-year.

Forty years ago, a diver would have seen a colourful, vibrant ecosystem that nurtured hundreds of marine species such as spiny lobsters, queen conchs, parrotfish, turtles and sharks. Coral reefs cover less than 1% of the world’s seafloor, but support at least 25% of marine species.

But when Wicquart went diving last year after a conference in Puerto Morelos, Mexico, he was met with bone-white, dying coral. “All the corals were bleached. All white corals. I was very affected by that. It’s totally different when you see it in the field to when you see it on a graph.”

EDIT

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/dec/09/caribbean-reefs-have-lost-48-of-hard-coral-since-1980-study-finds

[MuseRider]

1. We were still diving in 1980

and every year we marked a difference. You would hear a bit about it when you were out to eat or in a gathering spot but in the Dive Shops you would hear a lot. They made a point to show you the bleaching. As much as we dived when we had our trips it was terrifying then. I have watched many shows and seen the ongoing damage on sites we used to frequent . Way back then in the late 70's and early 80's it was a hot topic down there in the Caribbean every time we went.

I see the shows on the TV and even videos here about the beautiful fish and the glorious colors of the reef and it makes me want to vomit. Whoever makes those shows are lying to everyone instead of asking for help. It seems the bigger and more big city some of those places become are the places to start pushing and now, well nothing will happen around here with the idiot running things.

I have not been able to dive for quite a while now and as much as I miss it (would give up an arm to go again) I would be so sad it could not be fun.

Do all you can. Speak up. It is not only our food source that we are losing. When we were there you could identify many fish in the closer distances by their brilliant colors. Look at them on recent TV shows, unless right on top of them with a bright bright light the colors are hard to see. Everything down there is a mess of gray green and gray and sand.

My last dive was years ago. Before we left one of the dive guys pulled me aside. He handed me some beautiful shells and told me he wanted me to have them as he saw how much I loved them and always put them back. He told me they were already dead so I might as well love them from afar because all the building (Hawaii) was killing them all. He picked up hundreds of them as the hotels and mainly golf courses went up and poisoned them.