Tripling previous estimates
Researchers have identified nearly 166,000 square kilometers of coral reefs that can survive and recover from the climate crisis, tripling earlier estimates and offering a rare note of hope for one of the ocean's most threatened ecosystems. The landmark study, presented at the Our Ocean Conference in Mombasa, Kenya, analyzed more than 45,000 coral surveys alongside decades of climate and ocean data to create the most comprehensive map of resilient reefs ever assembled.
Where resilient reefs are found
Approximately 60% of the climate-resilient reefs are concentrated in just five nations: Australia, the Bahamas, Cuba, Indonesia and the Philippines. Some reefs are better positioned because they sit in rare cooler pockets of ocean or are dominated by large branching and plating corals that naturally withstand warmer temperatures. The research spans 71 countries and was supported by the Bloomberg Ocean Initiative.
Conservation gap
Despite the hopeful findings, less than a third of these resilient reefs currently fall within protected areas covered by conservation measures. Dr. Emily Darling, director of coral conservation at the Wildlife Conservation Society and co-author of the assessment, said: "Coral reefs are often framed as ecosystems beyond saving, but this research shows that there is a global set of reefs that have the potential to survive and recover." The findings provide a roadmap for prioritizing conservation efforts where they can have the greatest impact.