Advances in Forecasting Coral Bleaching Conditions for Reef Management

摘要

A nomalously warm ocean temperatures are the primary cause of mass coral bleaching events. Bleaching is a stress response of corals, the unfavorable conditions causing corals to expel their zooxanthellae, giving rise to the typical white coloration observed (Fig. 1). Major bleaching events tend to occur during the warmest months, with coral mortality determined by how much and for how long temperatures remain above the maximum mean summer temperatures. Basin-scale climatic processes such as the El Ni?o– Southern Oscillation (ENSO) can influence bleaching risk, with most mass bleaching events occurring during strong El Ni?o periods, due to sustained regional elevations of ocean temperatures. Aside from thermal stress, other stressors such as tropical cyclones, freshwater inflows, and anthropogenic pollution can also induce bleaching, but to a far lesser extent and generally not on large spatial scales.