Coral reef

Climate Change 2021 – The Physical Science Basis, Annex VII: Glossary, written by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and published by Cambridge University Press in 2023, defines coral reef as: ‘An underwater ecosystem characterised by structure-building stony corals. Warm-water coral reefs occur in shallow seas, mostly in the tropics, with the corals (animals) containing algae (plants) that depend on light and relatively stable temperature conditions. Cold-water coral reefs occur throughout the world, mostly at water depths of 50–500 m. In both kinds of reef, living corals frequently grow on older, dead material, predominantly made of calcium carbonate (CaCO3). Both warm- and cold-water coral reefs support high biodiversity of fish and other groups and are considered to be especially vulnerable to climate change.’

It defines coral bleaching as: ‘Loss of coral pigmentation through the loss of intracellular symbiotic algae (known as zooxanthellae) and/or loss of their pigments.’

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