Something Really, Really Terrible Is About To Happen To Our Coral

Coral reefs cover just 0.1 percent of the ocean floor, but provide habitat to 25 percent of sea-dwelling fish species. That's why coral scientist C. Mark Eakin, who coordinates the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Coral Reef Watch program, is surprised that the warning he has been sounding since last year (PDF)—that the globe's corals appear to be on the verge of a mass-scale bleaching event—hasn't drawn more media attention. Bleaching happens when corals lose contact with...