澳大利亚海洋科学学院报告说,在2021/22年度,大堡礁的珊瑚覆盖率高达36年。据报道,GBR的北部和中部地区报道了最大的覆盖范围,这是直接形成的,因为它们也是近年来因海温升高而受到珊瑚漂白影响最大的地区。在南部地区,监测发现珊瑚的覆盖范围略有下降,但这是由于其他影响珊瑚的压力所致,例如刺刺海星爆发。珊瑚属最负责增加的是Acropora。恢复令人鼓舞,因为Acropora也是以前事件中最容易漂白的属。自2016年以来,大堡礁已经经历了四次漂白事件,但目的报告发现,最后一次珊瑚死亡率很低。
How they survey the Great Barrier Reef
随着礁石调查延长了36年,其目标长期监测计划(LTMP)通过反复调查大型堡礁大面积的珊瑚礁社区,提供了变化的记录。该年度摘要基于对珊瑚礁的麦塔拖曳调查,在该珊瑚礁中,潜水员实际上是在200米长的礁石段以上的船后拖延了两分钟。他们记录了硬珊瑚覆盖的百分比,soft coral cover, bleached corals, Crown of Thorns starfish and important predators like Coral Trout and sharks. Methodical surveying year after year builds up a picture of if coral is growing, receding, or bleaching and coverage is divided into percentage categories. A total of 87 reefs were surveyed from August 2021 to May 2022 (reported as ‘2022’). There are some 3000 reefs making up the GBR, but the LTMP provides a representative survey across the entire length and breadth of the reef. The survey was conducted over 120 days and included 3888 tows.
Recovery has continued on the majority of Northern GBR reefs following a period of cumulative disturbances from 2014 to 2020. Only three out of 26 reefs previously surveyed in the last two years had decreased hard coral cover. Region-wide hard coral cover continued to increase from the lowest levels recorded by the LTMP in 2017 of 13% to 36% in 2022. Much of the recovery occurred in the Cape Grenville and Princess Charlotte Bay sectors, which were severely impacted by the 2016 mass coral bleaching event.
该报告在其关键结果中总结说:“在没有严重急性干扰的时期内,大多数GBR珊瑚礁都通过开始恢复的能力表现出韧性。”“但是,GBR的礁继续暴露于累积压力源。对未来干扰制度的预后表明,持续的海洋热浪以及持续持续的thorns thorns海星和热带气旋风险越来越长。因此,尽管观察到的恢复为GBR的整体状态提供了好消息,但人们对维持这种状态的能力越来越关注。”
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