![]() We do, however, still have time to save them – but only if we act now. To find out what the future holds for one of Earths greatest natural wonders, a team of scientists have based themselves on. But this extraordinary place and all the life it supports is under threat like never before. Acoustic techniques have been used to show that they are now once more gathering in their thousands to spawn.Īs Blue Planet II made clear, our planet’s reefs are both beautiful and in peril. The rich array of life in the worlds oceans and seas. Liz Bonnin discovers why the Great Barrier Reef is home to an astonishing diversity of life and vital to the health of our seas. Off the Cayman Islands, in the central Caribbean, similar groups of spawning Nassau grouper were once heavily exploited by local fishers but are now legally protected. In a study in Belize, localised fishing was controlled in a Marine Reserve in which grazing of algae by parrotfish was maintained, halving the rate of reef decline.īy maintaining the organisation and complexity of reefs, we can ensure that these reef cities thrive, even in the most threatened regions.Īt the end of the Blue Planet II reef episode, thousands of groupers gathered at the drop off on a pristine and remote reef in French Polynesia, risking gatherings of hundreds of sharks to swim out into the tidal stream to spawn. Described as 'the first ever comprehensive series on the natural history of the worlds oceans', each of the eight 50-minute episodes examines a different aspect of marine life. In their weakened state, these corals reefs will be further compromised by more frequent tropical storms and rising sea levels.Īlthough global action is required to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (and this will have little effect until mid-century), management intervention at a local level can build resilience on reefs by reducing direct human impact. The Blue Planet is a BBC nature documentary series narrated by David Attenborough, first transmitted in the UK from 12 September 2001. Assuming current trajectories, by mid-century bleaching episodes are predicted to be annual events affecting most reefs, and by the end of the century, atmospheric carbon dioxide levels will have changed ocean chemistry causing acidification, weakening the calcium carbonate skeletons of corals and slowing their growth. Estimates indicate that 75% of the world’s reefs are already threatened by local threats combined with rising sea surface temperatures and mortality from coral bleaching.Įven the remote reefs of the central Indian Ocean and north-west Pacific are now weakened, and vulnerable to disease. The most severely threatened reefs are in South-East Asia and the Atlantic, but even the Indian Ocean, Middle East and wider Pacific are now suffering from direct human impact. We must remember that the majority of coral reefs, especially those close to large human populations, are already degraded due to localised impact from over and destructive fishing, nutrient run off from urban and agricultural land, and coastal development. The producers understandably visit the best and most pristine reefs in the world to capture these wonderful sequences.
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