A coral-killing disease spreading through the ocean waters touching a number of national parks is threatenening to upend the marine ecosystem, threatening biodiversity and impacting coastal economies, according to new research from a University of Florida doctoral candidate.
Coral reefs of the Virgin Islands are suffering from bleaching caused by elevated ocean temperatures and disease. We discuss the situation with Jeff Miller, retired NPS biologist, drawing attention to the need for conservation efforts.
While Virgin Islands National Park might seem idyllic from above water, beneath the surface of the Caribbean Sea the once vibrant coral reefs rimming the park have been impacted by a bleaching caused by abnormally high ocean temperatures and by a disease that combined could have devastating consequences.
The pace of warming oceans is pointing to "a global mass coral bleaching and mortality event over the next 12 to 24 months," with much of the damage being done to coral reefs within national parks in the Caribbean.