One of the longest and most intense heat stress events ever recorded is raising alarm – and a warning about the future of reefs worldwide
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When it comes to coral, the Great Barrier Reef steals the global limelight. It’s a bucket-list place for many and, when it gets hit by coral bleaching, it makes news around the world.
But Australia has another group of spectacular reefs on the west of the continent. Many of them had managed to escape the worst of global heating, until the worst marine heatwave ever recorded for this region. Even a “hope spot” for coral reefs has been decimated by the most severe heatwave on record for that part of the world.
I’ve been following the fate of the reefs on both coasts over recent months, and for today’s newsletter I’ll try to make some sense of it – after the most important reads of the week.
