Coral Health

Good vs. Poor Coral Health

A healthy coral reef is teeming with life, vibrant colors, and extensive coral cover, serving as a critical habitat for diverse marine species. In contrast, a degraded reef shows signs of bleaching, loss of coral cover, and a stark decline in biodiversity, often caused by climate change, pollution, and human activities. Slide the handle to compare a healthy coral reef with vibrant colors and abundant marine life to a degraded reef suffering from bleaching and low biodiversity.

Coral Bleaching

Coral bleaching is a major threat to reef health worldwide, largely due to climate change. This image shows a reef in American Samoa healthy, before bleaching in 2014 (left), during bleaching in early 2015 (middle), and dead after bleaching late 2015 (right).

Image source: Ocean Image Bank, The Ocean Agency

The image below shows a reef in Hawaii before bleaching in August 2015 (left) and after bleaching just a few months later in November 2015 (right).

Image source: Ocean Image Bank, The Ocean Agency

Coral Restoration

Coral reef health can improve in the right conditions. This photo shows a coral reef near Komodo, Indonesia before (2015) and after (2019) restoration. Note the poor coral health on the left.

Image source: Ocean Image Bank, Martin Colognoli