Environmental stress on corals is coasting their energy and causes them to deplete their metabolic reserves and become victim of infections. In some areas, chemicals like bleach and cyanide were being continually dumped into the oceans. Scientists found the reefs to turn white and appear bony when in contact with such chemicals. It turned out that the corals were only striped of their symbiotic organisms known as zooranthellae, leaving limestone skeletons showing. The scientists also discovered that corals bleach form the sun as well as in high ocean temperatures, that lately, have been high from El Nino.
Corals are naturally fragile in their build and are easily damaged by even a snorkel's fin.
When pollutants or chemicals weaken them, the chance of disease and infection is greater. The reefs seem to be asking for closer attention and protection, but perhaps they just need to adjust. I was glad to find this article on coral because it was helpful to my web page question and the fact that it is recent, makes the knowledge I gained, all the more helpful. Douglas H. Chadwick is a wildlife biologist. He currently lives in a small Montana town, where nature and animals are plentiful.