Thursday, March 28, 2024
Hawai'i Free Press

Current Articles | Archives

Tuesday, November 5, 2019
DLNR: Coral Bleaching wasn't all that bad
By News Release @ 10:20 PM :: 3743 Views :: Environment, Tourism

(Click on image to watch video)

CORAL BLEACHING NOT AS SEVERE AS PREDICTED BUT STILL WIDESPREAD

Extensive Surveys Show Bleaching Event Now Abating

News Release from DLNR, Nov 5, 2019 

(Honolulu) – The widespread coral bleaching event predicted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) did impact reefs across Hawai‘i, beginning with warm ocean temperatures in the summer, extending into the fall.

(IQ Test: Did you know that coral bleaching is not coral death?  They don't want you to know this.)

For the past two months, teams from the DLNR Division of Aquatic Resources (DAR), NOAA, The Nature Conservancy, the Hawai‘i Institute of Marine Biology and the Arizona State University Center for Global Discovery and Conservation Science, conducted rapid assessments of coral health along coral reef tracts throughout the state. They report cauliflower and rice corals were most impacted.

“Conditions for corals are now improving with sea surface temperatures beginning to drop,” according to Gerry Davis with NOAA Marine Fisheries. He explained, “While bleaching this year was not as devastating as the events seen across the Hawaiian Islands in 2014 and 2015, the DAR surveys, along with NOAA observations and reports from ocean users to the Hawai‘i Coral Bleaching Tracker, show there still was substantial bleaching found on all islands.” As much as half of live coral bleached in the most heavily affected areas.

On Hawai’i Island, the majority of the sites surveyed by the DAR teams showed some level of bleaching.  The areas most affected by the by bleaching were along the Kona coast, with an average of 40% live coral bleached in many survey locations.  Several locations there were heavily bleached in the 2015 event which resulted in high mortality.  “This has resulted in less coral cover in 2019 as previous bleaching has reduced the amount of live coral in some of these places,” according to Brian Neilson, DAR Administrator.

On Maui, bleaching surveys showed that the amount of coral impacted was less than in 2014 and 2015, but areas with low coral from previous events were more severely impacted this year.  For instance the near-shore reef at Pa’ia, where the live coral cover is only 5%, more than three-quarters of the live coral left, bleached.  As reported earlier, reefs in Molokini’s crater experienced upwards of 50% of corals bleached. At Olowalu, routine monitoring in August did detect numerous Porities corals bleached and overgrown with turf algae.

Several locations on O‘ahu were surveyed for bleaching the first time this year, in what were the most extensive island-wide surveys yet conducted by DAR aquatic biologists and technicians.

At Lanikai, in Windward O‘ahu, a beach known for its white sand and heavy visitation draw, bleaching has covered an estimated 55% of live corals. This is a higher percentage than reported during the last bleaching event.

Also on Windward O‘ahu, surveys teams looked at numerous patch reefs in Kaneohe Bay (see video/photographic resources below). DAR Aquatic Biologist Kim Fuller led the efforts there and at other locations around the island.  She reported, “On the patch reefs, bleaching was patchy.  On some reefs more than 50% of the corals have turned the tale-tale snow white color which makes it easy to spot bleached corals, while on other reefs nearby, maybe only 10-20% was bleached.”

“Kaua‘i’s reefs mirrored this year’s statewide trend with extensive bleaching in some areas and less in others, but overall the 2019 event appears to be less severe than those of four and five years ago,” Fuller added.

The reefs along Molokai’s south shore were also surveyed and also showed the same trend, where cauliflower and rice corals experienced the worst of it.

DLNR Chair Suzanne Case concluded, “We hope that greater awareness of the constant stresses we all put on our coral reefs and the steps we can take to reduce those impacts, helped the corals persist during this event.  This is why we encourage everyone, especially commercial tour operators who take people into the ocean, to sign The Coral Pledge (also announced today). Our efforts to protect, preserve and perpetuate Hawai‘i’s coral reefs as the foundation of the ocean will take knowledge and constant awareness from all of us. The steps outlined in the pledge are the best way for everyone to do their part – simple steps, to save corals.

To see ocean user’s coral bleaching reports combined with the scientific monitoring, visit www.hawaiicoral.org.  People (dive-tour operators) can continue contributing bleaching reports to this website.

# # #  

MN: Reefs in Molokini’s crater experienced upward of 50% of bleaching this year (dive tour operators freak out)  

SA: Coral bleaching widespread across Hawaiian Islands, surveys show (Keep hysteria alive.)

Links

TEXT "follow HawaiiFreePress" to 40404

Register to Vote

2aHawaii

808 Silent Majority

Aloha Pregnancy Care Center

AntiPlanner

Antonio Gramsci Reading List

A Place for Women in Waipio

Ballotpedia Hawaii

Broken Trust

Build More Hawaiian Homes Working Group

Christian Homeschoolers of Hawaii

Cliff Slater's Second Opinion

DVids Hawaii

FIRE

Fix Oahu!

Frontline: The Fixers

Genetic Literacy Project

Grassroot Institute

Habele.org

Hawaii Aquarium Fish Report

Hawaii Aviation Preservation Society

Hawaii Catholic TV

Hawaii Christian Coalition

Hawaii Cigar Association

Hawaii ConCon Info

Hawaii Debt Clock

Hawaii Defense Foundation

Hawaii Family Forum

Hawaii Farmers and Ranchers United

Hawaii Farmer's Daughter

Hawaii Federalist Society

Hawaii Federation of Republican Women

Hawaii History Blog

Hawaii Homeschool Association

Hawaii Jihadi Trial

Hawaii Legal News

Hawaii Legal Short-Term Rental Alliance

Hawaii Matters

Hawaii's Partnership for Appropriate & Compassionate Care

Hawaii Public Charter School Network

Hawaii Rifle Association

Hawaii Shippers Council

Hawaii Smokers Alliance

Hawaii State Data Lab

Hawaii Together

HIEC.Coop

HiFiCo

Hiram Fong Papers

Homeschool Legal Defense Hawaii

Honolulu Moms for Liberty

Honolulu Navy League

Honolulu Traffic

House Minority Blog

Imua TMT

Inouye-Kwock, NYT 1992

Inside the Nature Conservancy

Inverse Condemnation

Investigative Project on Terrorism

July 4 in Hawaii

Kakaako Cares

Keep Hawaii's Heroes

Land and Power in Hawaii

Legislative Committee Analysis Tool

Lessons in Firearm Education

Lingle Years

Managed Care Matters -- Hawaii

Malama Pregnancy Center of Maui

MentalIllnessPolicy.org

Military Home Educators' Network Oahu

Missile Defense Advocacy

MIS Veterans Hawaii

NAMI Hawaii

Natatorium.org

National Christian Foundation Hawaii

National Parents Org Hawaii

NFIB Hawaii News

No GMO Means No Aloha

Not Dead Yet, Hawaii

NRA-ILA Hawaii

Oahu Alternative Transport

Obookiah

OHA Lies

Opt Out Today

OurFutureHawaii.com

Patients Rights Council Hawaii

PEACE Hawaii

People vs Machine

Practical Policy Institute of Hawaii

Pritchett Cartoons

Pro-GMO Hawaii

P.U.E.O.

RailRipoff.com

Rental by Owner Awareness Assn

ReRoute the Rail

Research Institute for Hawaii USA

Rick Hamada Show

RJ Rummel

Robotics Organizing Committee

School Choice in Hawaii

SenatorFong.com

Sink the Jones Act

Statehood for Guam

Talking Tax

Tax Foundation of Hawaii

The Real Hanabusa

Time Out Honolulu

Trustee Akina KWO Columns

UCC Truths

US Tax Foundation Hawaii Info

VAREP Honolulu

Waagey.org

West Maui Taxpayers Association

What Natalie Thinks

Whole Life Hawaii

Yes2TMT