Climate change tolerant corals could be found all over the GBR

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2024-09-11 09:01

Australia; International; NSW; QLD

CC:0

Australian and international researchers say they found varieties of reef-building corals across over 1060 km of the Great Barrier Reef (GBR). They tested over 700 individual corals across the GBR and say they found ones that were able to deal with a variation of more than 6°C between different reefs, and over 3°C in individuals living side-by-side. The researchers say that the widespread nature of these tolerant corals could be suggestive of the GBR's ability to adapt to future warming.

Media release

From: The Royal Society

Reef-building corals persistence under climate warming greatly depends upon natural selection of standing variation in heat tolerance. Using acute heat stress assays in >700 individual corals distributed across 1060 km of the Great Barrier Reef, we quantified standing phenotypic variation in the heat tolerance of a representative coral species. Heat tolerance variation was more widely distributed than previously thought, varying both among reefs (>6°C) and individuals living side-by-side within reefs (>3°C). Tolerant corals were found at all reefs investigated, suggestive of widespread capacity to adapt to future warming. These findings hold important implications for the management of threatened coral populations.

Journal/
conference: Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences

Research:Paper

Organisation/s: Southern Cross University, Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS)

Funder: This work was supported by the Reef Restoration and Adaptation Program funded by the partnership between the Australian Government’s Reef Trust and the Great Barrier Reef Foundation.

Media Contact/s

Contact details are only visible to registered journalists.