Great Barrier Reef lost 50% of its corals in 3 decades: study

The Great Barrier Reef in Australia has lost half of its corals in the last 30 years, a new study by researchers from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies in Queensland has found.

The coral communities were analyzed between 1995 and 2017 and they found depletion in almost all coral populations. Climate change is being held responsible for the disturbance.

They concluded that the number of large, medium and small corals on the reef has declined by over 50% since the 1990s. Due to fewer babies and fewer large breeding adults, the ability of the reef to recover has been compromised.

The mass bleaching of 2016 and 2017 led to steeper deterioration in coral colonies in Nothern and Central Great Barrier Reef. They urged for a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.