Impaired recovery of the Great Barrier Reef under cumulative stress

Coral recovery on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) declined by 84% between 1992 and 2010, signaling a loss of resilience under cumulative stressors. While some reefs showed high recovery, key coral types exhibited near-zero recovery, highlighting sensitivity to chronic pressures like water quality degradation, warming, and sublethal effects from acute disturbances such as cyclones, bleaching, and crown-of-thorns starfish outbreaks. The study modeled rapid recovery potential if stressors are reduced, suggesting that localized management and global climate action could restore coral cover and diversity. This underscores the urgent need for combined efforts to mitigate both chronic and acute threats to the GBR.

Ortiz, J.-C., Wolff, N. H., Anthony, K. R. N., Devlin, M., Lewis, S., & Mumby, P. J. (2018). Impaired recovery of the Great Barrier Reef under cumulative stress. Science Advances, 4(7). https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aar6127