Mass coral death at Ningaloo Reef
A fresh survey of eight sites along WA's Ningaloo Reef has revealed more than 60 per cent of corals have died.
Record water temperatures caused widespread bleaching last summer.
Of the 1,600 corals counted in March [last year], only 600 were still alive come late October.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-11-19/ningaloo-reef-coral-mortality-survey/106023012
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Coral bleaching vs mortality
When the ocean get too hot, corals expel the zooxanthellae algae that lives in their tissue.
In Western Australia, the damage to coral reefs including the World Heritage-listed Ningaloo has eclipsed any previous bleaching events.
These microorganisms give corals their bright pastel colours and disease resistance.
Their absence creates the bleaching effect many Australians have become all too familiar with.
What Ningaloo reef looked like before the major bleaching event.
Photo by Brooke Pyke
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