Spotlight on a New Study that Shows Dead Reefs Can Come Back to Life
Coral reefs around the world are at risk due to global climate change. However, a new study may serve as a sign of hope for the long-term existence of coral reefs.
Professor Richard Aronson at the Florida Institute of Technology and his colleagues discovered, by taking core samples of a coral reef off the coast of the Pacific coast of Panama, that a 6,000-year-old reef had literally “shut down” for an extended period of time. Yet, the reef still managed to survive and flourish once corals emerged from their period of dormancy.
“These [Panamanian] reefs were shut down for 2,500 years,” Aronson says, “that represents about 40 percent of their entire history.” The study suggests that despite dramatic shifts in climate, dormant periods helped ensure long-term survival of the vibrant reefs that populate the waters off the coast of Panama today.…