Climate stress ravages Terengganu coral reefs
Malaysian Marine Science Society (MSMS) president Affendi Yang Amri said due to rising sea surface temperatures, Pulau Redang recorded 100% bleaching with a coral mortality rate of 63.6%, making it the worst hit location so far.
This was followed by marine park islands like Pasir Besar in Pulau Lang Tengah, which recorded a bleaching rate of 88.7% and a mortality rate of 56.8%, while Seringgih in Pulau Perhentian saw a bleaching rate of 54.9% and a mortality rate of 24.9%.
"The three affected locations are located in Terengganu, which is one of the main states focused on marine-based tourism," he said at the Coral Reef Rehabilitation programme in Pulau Aur, Mersing recently.
He said high sea surface temperature due to climate change is the main factor in the large-scale coral bleaching in several locations in the country this year.
Affendi, who is also a coral reef expert, said the phenomenon was also recorded in several other locations, including Sabah and Johor, and described the current bleaching as one of the worst in the history of coral reef monitoring in the country.
"Last year, 2024, was indeed a very bad year. Sea water temperatures rose too high for a long period of time, causing coral reefs to become stressed, bleach and eventually die. In some locations, the death rate reached 60%," he said.
He said coral bleaching occurs when algae that live symbiotically with coral reefs are separated due to heat (thermal) stress, causing corals to lose their main food source and turn white, and that coral reefs are breeding grounds for one-third of marine species.
"When temperatures rise by just one degree Celsius above normal, corals will be stressed. The microscopic algae (called zooxanthellae) that usually provide up to 90% of the coral's food will be expelled. When this algae is gone, the coral loses its colour (and turns white), the coral starves and eventually dies," he explained.
Affendi, who is also a Universiti Malaya Institute of Ocean and Earth Sciences (IOES) research officer, said coral bleaching not only affects the marine ecosystem, but also threatens the country's seafood resources, which depend on the coral reef ecosystem.
"When corals die, the three-dimensional structures that are the habitats of various fish species are also destroyed. This reduces the population of fish such as Groupers and Rays (stingray) that depend on corals for shelter and reproduction.
"We estimate that about 40% of the fish in the local market are directly related to the coral reef ecosystem. If this habitat continues to be damaged, our seafood supply will dwindle and prices will increase," he said. - Bernama
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The Star
a day ago
- The Star
Climate stress ravages Terengganu coral reefs
MERSING: Three coral reef zones in Terengganu have been identified as worst-hit by coral bleaching in Malaysia this year, according to the latest data on the country's marine ecosystem monitoring. Malaysian Marine Science Society (MSMS) president Affendi Yang Amri said due to rising sea surface temperatures, Pulau Redang recorded 100% bleaching with a coral mortality rate of 63.6%, making it the worst hit location so far. This was followed by marine park islands like Pasir Besar in Pulau Lang Tengah, which recorded a bleaching rate of 88.7% and a mortality rate of 56.8%, while Seringgih in Pulau Perhentian saw a bleaching rate of 54.9% and a mortality rate of 24.9%. "The three affected locations are located in Terengganu, which is one of the main states focused on marine-based tourism," he said at the Coral Reef Rehabilitation programme in Pulau Aur, Mersing recently. He said high sea surface temperature due to climate change is the main factor in the large-scale coral bleaching in several locations in the country this year. Affendi, who is also a coral reef expert, said the phenomenon was also recorded in several other locations, including Sabah and Johor, and described the current bleaching as one of the worst in the history of coral reef monitoring in the country. "Last year, 2024, was indeed a very bad year. Sea water temperatures rose too high for a long period of time, causing coral reefs to become stressed, bleach and eventually die. In some locations, the death rate reached 60%," he said. He said coral bleaching occurs when algae that live symbiotically with coral reefs are separated due to heat (thermal) stress, causing corals to lose their main food source and turn white, and that coral reefs are breeding grounds for one-third of marine species. "When temperatures rise by just one degree Celsius above normal, corals will be stressed. The microscopic algae (called zooxanthellae) that usually provide up to 90% of the coral's food will be expelled. When this algae is gone, the coral loses its colour (and turns white), the coral starves and eventually dies," he explained. Affendi, who is also a Universiti Malaya Institute of Ocean and Earth Sciences (IOES) research officer, said coral bleaching not only affects the marine ecosystem, but also threatens the country's seafood resources, which depend on the coral reef ecosystem. "When corals die, the three-dimensional structures that are the habitats of various fish species are also destroyed. This reduces the population of fish such as Groupers and Rays (stingray) that depend on corals for shelter and reproduction. "We estimate that about 40% of the fish in the local market are directly related to the coral reef ecosystem. If this habitat continues to be damaged, our seafood supply will dwindle and prices will increase," he said. - Bernama
Barnama
a day ago
- Barnama
Climate Stress Ravages Terengganu Coral Reefs
MERSING, July 25 (Bernama) — Three coral reef zones in Terengganu have been identified as worst-hit by coral bleaching in Malaysia this year, according to the latest data on the country's marine ecosystem monitoring. Malaysian Marine Science Society (MSMS) president Affendi Yang Amri said due to rising sea surface temperatures, Pulau Redang recorded 100 per cent bleaching with a coral mortality rate of 63.6 pct, making it the worst hit location so far. This was followed by marine park islands like Pasir Besar in Pulau Lang Tengah which recorded a bleaching rate of 88.7 per cent and a mortality rate of 56.8 per cent, while Seringgih in Pulau Perhentian saw a bleaching rate of 54.9 per cent and a mortality rate of 24.9 per cent. "The three affected locations are located in Terengganu, which is one of the main states focused on marine-based tourism," he told Bernama at the Coral Reef Rehabilitation programme in Pulau Aur, Mersing recently. He said high sea surface temperature due to climate change is the main factor in the large-scale coral bleaching in several locations in the country this year. Affendi, who is also a coral reef expert, said the phenomenon was also recorded in several other locations including Sabah and Johor, and described the current bleaching as one of the worst in the history of coral reef monitoring in the country. "Last year, 2024, was indeed a very bad year. Sea water temperatures rose too high for a long period of time, causing coral reefs to become stressed, bleach and eventually die. In some locations, the death rate reached 60 per cent," he told Bernama. He said coral bleaching occurs when algae that live symbiotically with coral reefs are separated due to heat (thermal) stress, causing corals to lose their main food source and turns white and that coral reefs are breeding grounds for one third of marine species. 'When temperatures rise by just one degree Celsius above normal, corals will be stressed. The microscopic algae (called zooxanthellae) that usually provides up to 90 per cent of the coral's food will be expelled. When this algae is gone, the coral loses its colour (and turns white), the coral starves and eventually dies,' he explained.
The Star
2 days ago
- The Star
Greek fir forests dying as heat peaks and snow cover wanes
FILE PHOTO: A drone view of dying fir trees among the green forests, due to prolonged droughts leaving them exposed to pest infestations according to scientists and locals, near the village of Kalavryta, Peloponnese, Greece, July 9, 2025. REUTERS/Louisa Gouliamaki/File Photo KALAVRYTA, Greece (Reuters) -On the wooded slopes surrounding the village of Kalavryta in southwestern Greece, hundreds of dying fir trees stand out among the dark green foliage, their brittle, reddish needles a stark reminder of how drought slowly drains the life from nature. Fir trees are known to need cooler, moist climates. But prolonged droughts in recent years linked to a fast-changing climate in Greece are leaving them exposed to pest infestations, scientists and locals said. "In the past, we used to see a few dead trees scattered amongst the healthy ones," said Katerina Kolirou, head of the local forest service in Kalavryta, a village famed for its forests of the Greek fir species Abies cephalonica. "Now, unfortunately, among the dead ones, we try to spot the few remaining healthy green firs." Less water and moisture mean that fir trees become more vulnerable to attacks by pests thatbore into their bark to lay eggs and create tunnels, disrupting the trees' ability to transport nutrients between roots and branches and leading to their death. "These are wood-boring beetles," said Dimitrios Avtzis, a forest entomologist and research director at the Greek Agricultural Organization Demeter, a state research agency, as he cut into the bark of a decaying tree in Kalavryta and found a beetle thathe later placed in a vial for examination. "They don't form populations as large as bark beetles, but they are just as destructive to the tree." Across the globe, 2024 was the warmest year on record, with the average temperature exceeding 1.5 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial era for the first time. Temperatures in Greece rose by the same amount between 1991-2020, but insome northwestern mountain areas there was a larger 2C increase, said director of research at the National Observatory of Athens Kostas Lagouvardos, who led a study on rising temperatures and snow cover. This, in turn, reduced the number of days the soil was covered by snow, another vital source of moisture for fir trees. He estimated a 30-40% snow-cover decrease over the years. Fir forest decline, also seen on the Greek mainland and the Ionian Islands, is not unique to Greece. In the province of Huesca in Spain, also in the Mediterranean region, a different species of fir in the Pyrenees mountains, the Abies Alba, has also shown signs of declining in recent years, a development that scientists link to extreme heat. In Kalavryta, authorities plan to remove dead and infested trees to limit the damage. But this might not be enough to save the forests. "We cannot stop climate change," Lagouvardos said. "What we can try to do is mitigate it or find solutions. But we cannot create snow." (Reporting by Vania Turner in Athens, additional reporting by David Latona in Madrid; Writing by Angeliki Koutantou; Editing by Alexandra Hudson)
