As ocean temperatures reach their highest in 400 years, a new study published in Nature warns that the Great Barrier Reef (GBR), the largest living ecosystem on Earth, is facing an existential threat.
Without urgent intervention the report says the GBR is at risk of experiencing temperatures conducive to near-annual coral bleaching, with negative consequences for biodiversity and ecosystems services.
According to the research paper, during the nine January–March periods from 2016 to 2024, there were five mass coral bleaching events on the GBR—each associated with high sea surface temperatures. These also occurred during five of the six warmest years the region has experienced in the last four centuries.
The frequency of recent mass coral bleaching and mortality on the GBR is cause for concern, the report said, noting that researchers were, at the time of writing, assessing the impacts of the 2024 mass bleaching event.
“Climate model analysis confirms that human influence on the climate system is responsible for the rapid warming in recent decades.
“This attribution, together with the recent ocean temperature extremes, post-1900 warming trend and observed mass coral bleaching, shows that the existential threat to the GBR ecosystem from anthropogenic climate change is now realized,” the report reads.
For the full report, head here.