Environmental Science B Block

Coral Bleaching
By Nchuo, Sana, Mariam, and Shelby
 Background
Coral and Coral Reefs
● Coral is made of organisms called
coral polyps that build/group up
together
○ This creates the main
structures in coral reefs
● Coral reefs are very diverse marine
ecosystems that may support up 1
quarter of all ocean species
Coral Bleaching
● When corals are under severe stress,
they expel their symbiotic algae,
turning white in color
● Climate change causes rising sea
temperatures, a stressor on corals
World Temperature Difference
Aerial view of Coral Bleaching
 Data Retrieval
Various research companies conduct coral reef analyses by color
matching the corals. ReefBase Database is a public site that
compiles all of the coral bleaching data which was used for our
data analysis.
 . (Severity code: -1=no data, 0-3
low to high bleaching severity).

year
Global Coral bleaching severity
 . (Severity code: -1=no data, 0-3
low to high bleaching severity).

year
Coral Bleaching Severity (Florida)
 . (Severity code: -1=no data, 0-3
low to high bleaching severity).

year
Great Barrier Reef)
Coral Bleaching Severity (Torres Strait &
 Discussion
● There is a positive linear trend between coral bleaching severity and the year for all
data sets

● There is also a positive linear trend between the year and the global temperature

● Increases in ocean temperature stresses the coral and cause it to bleach

● Given all of this there is very strong evidence that the increasing temperatures and
increasing bleaching are related
 Environmental Impact
● Coral bleaching makes the coral more vulnerable to disease, as well as having
negative effects on their growth and reproduction
● This impacts the entire ecosystem as many other organisms rely on the coral
○ Ex: food, shelter
● These ecosystems take years to recover
Conclusion/Solution
Thanks!