50-60% Of Tahiti/Moorea Reefs Have Bleached In Past Days Up To 100 Meters Down w/o El Nino

[hatrack]

The reefs are among the most regularly bleached in the world, thanks to their position in the path of warm waters that spread west from South America during El Nino years. This year, however, without the presence of an El Nino and the warmer water it brings, the reefs should have been spared.

But in the last few days, it's been estimated that 50 to 60 per cent of corals on reefs around Tahiti and Moorea have been bleached, according to marine biologist Luiz Rocha from the Californian Academy of Sciences. "I've seen the reports of the Great Barrier Reef bleaching, but this is the first time I've seen [bleaching] myself, and it hits you a lot harder," Dr Rocha said. "We have seen bleaching all the way down to 100 metres. But it's worst on the shallow, sheltered reefs."

Coral bleaching occurs when high water temperatures cause the coral to expel its symbiotic algae, revealing the white skeleton beneath.

EDIT

In March, when the region's waters remained unusually warm, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration issued a bleaching warning. But Dr Rocha said he did not expect the magnitude of bleaching that he'd seen. "I was overwhelmed by sadness because I saw these reefs looking really healthy just two months ago."

EDIT

https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2019-05-21/coral-bleaching-french-polynesia/11129634

[OnlinePoker]

1. Why does it say El Nino not present? We've been in one for 6 months.

http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/analysis_monitoring/lanina/enso_evolution-status-fcsts-web.pdf