CORAL REEFS
Brazil’s coral reefs are in the ICU
Fire corals such as this one, photographed off the coast of Pernambuco, have undergone significant bleaching over recent decades, putting their survival at risk. Photo: Pedro Pereira
At the end of January, the Brazilian government of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva delivered the necessary paperwork to make the Abrolhos Marine National Park a candidate for UNESCO World Heritage site status.
Situated off the southern coast of the northeastern Brazilian state of Bahia, the park covers most of the Abrolhos archipelago and is a biological jewel, being the largest humpback whale breeding ground in the South Atlantic and home to large coral reef formations that have been around for thousands of years. UNESCO recognition would see the park acknowledged as a site of “exceptional value to humanity,” no doubt helping future conservation efforts.
However, while the government seeks UNESCO’s seal of prestige, what makes the park special is under constant threat. A recent study by researchers from Brazil and Germany showed that…
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