Coral Reef Insight, Coral Reef Survival

Rising ocean temperatures are taking a toll on marine environments—especially on the Caribbean coast of Panama, where BU researchers have discovered a coral reef in jeopardy.

Only a year ago, Associate Professor of Biology Sarah Davies, an expert on coral, studied the Panamanian reef. Upon hearing reports of coral “bleaching”—a loss of color due to warming temperatures—Davies sent her lab team back to see what was happening. The answer was disturbing, showing a stark before-and-after comparison that demonstrated how much bleaching had occurred in one year’s time.

Despite these findings, Davies and her team are also learning that certain corals can survive extreme conditions. In the western Pacific Ocean, the team discovered some that can withstand higher water temperatures, which may suggest how corals can adapt. And they are further encouraged by their recent discovery of multiple healthy Panamanian corals that are over 60 feet in circumference, indicating that these corals have survived for hundreds of years and remain healthy even after the hot 2023 summer.

Scientists, including Davies, think the organisms doing well in the face of climate change are able to adjust to varying conditions and reproduce consistently. Further study is needed, but even this can be challenging due to a lack of consensus on how to analyze reef health. Davies led 60 other scientists in authoring a paper to initiate agreement on symbiont assessment and genetic sequencing.

“We put forward these types of experiments and hope this paper is a framework for moving the field forward,” Davies says. As she and her team look ahead, they are intent on discovering more about coral adaptation and how this beautiful species can survive and thrive during climate change.