Reef corals bleach to survive change

Andrew C. Baker ()
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Andrew C. Baker: Wildlife Conservation Society, Osborn Laboratories of Marine Science, New York Aquarium

Nature, 2001, vol. 411, issue 6839, 765-766

Abstract: Abstract The bleaching of coral reefs, in which symbiotic algae are lost from reef-building invertebrates, is usually considered to be a drastic and damaging response to adverse environmental conditions1,2. Here I report results from transplant experiments involving different combinations of coral host and algal symbiont that support an alternative view, in which bleaching offers a high-risk ecological opportunity for reef corals to rid themselves rapidly of suboptimal algae and to acquire new partners. This strategy could be an advantage to coral reefs that face increasingly frequent and severe episodes of mass bleaching as a result of projected climate change2,3.

Date: 2001
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DOI: 10.1038/35081151

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