Honduran Coral Reef Defies Climate Crisis, Remains Healthy Despite Record Heat
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📰 The quick summary: A patch of endangered elkhorn coral in Honduras’s Tela Bay shows remarkable resilience against high temperatures that devastated other reefs, offering valuable insights for coral conservation worldwide.
📈 One key stat: Elkhorn coral has died off by up to 98% in some Caribbean areas since the 1980s, making Cocalito’s thriving reef an extraordinary exception that could help save other reefs.
💬 One key quote: “The reef challenges our basic understanding of corals, as it is thriving at a time where we are trying to stop reefs from dying,” Paolo Guardiola, a biologist and dive instructor in the town of Tela, told Mongabay.
1️⃣ The big picture: A reef nicknamed ‘Cocalito’ on Honduras’s Caribbean coast is displaying unusual resistance to rising ocean temperatures that devastated other coral reefs in the region. Composed mainly of endangered elkhorn coral, this reef remains healthy despite the multiple stressors affecting it, including pollution, fishing pressure, and the record heat of 2024. Scientists are studying this anomaly to understand what makes these corals resilient when similar species are dying worldwide. The reef’s survival contradicts expectations and offers a rare bright spot amid widespread coral bleaching events that have impacted 84% of reefs globally.
2️⃣ Why is this good news: Cocalito’s resilience demonstrates that some coral populations can adapt to warming conditions, giving scientists valuable research material to potentially develop heat-resistant strains. Researchers have identified that these corals host unusual heat-tolerant symbiotic algae, which may explain their ability to withstand extreme temperatures. This discovery could lead to new conservation strategies for reefs worldwide. Local conservation efforts are gaining momentum, with new funding allowing independent research and monitoring activities. The reef’s story has also inspired international attention, including a documentary project that aims to share its lessons with a global audience.
3️⃣ What’s next: Scientists continue studying Cocalito to determine exactly what makes it so resilient, with theories ranging from genetic adaptations to favorable currents. A newly formed Post-Storm Reef Response Brigade will help repair reefs damaged by storms in the area. Conservationists have also purchased land to build a biobank for Tela Bay’s corals to preserve their unique properties.
Read the full story here: Mongabay – A Honduran reef stumps conservationists with its unlikely resilience
