Wednesday January 11, 2023
The Weather Channel —
Picture this: You are on your dream tropical holiday, exploring the golden beaches and swimming over the shimmering coral gardens, until a puzzling sight stops you mid-scuba diving. Instead of gracefully floating about, you witness small fishes chasing down one another like sworn enemies, over a patch of lifeless coral tables.
This is the impact of climate change that’s unfolding right before our eyes.
You see, coral polyps are magnificent organisms that band together to form vibrant colonies, adding splendid coral reefs to our oceans. These coral reefs serve as homes, shelters and food sources for a considerable fraction of marine biodiversity.
However, climate change is in no mood to spare these ‘rainforests of the sea’. Threatened to death and extinction by coral bleaching, dying coral reefs aren’t good news for anyone — especially not for the fishes that rely on them for food.