NSU researches warn about coral bleaching off the coast of South Florida – NBC 6 South Florida

Unusual coral bleaching in the ocean off Broward County is prompting local researchers to sound the alarm.

Researchers with Nova Southeastern University’s National Coral Reef Initiative were surprised to find octocorals stressed to the point they might die off in a matter of weeks.

They estimate the bleaching started this summer.

The team dove into the water in recent weeks to find octocorals bleaching at 90-100% despite their ability to withstand higher water temperatures.

“Typically, octocorals are some of the more resistant groups of corals to bleaching,” said Dr. Jose Lopez, a professor at NSU’s Halmos College of the Arts & Sciences. “So they can withstand higher temperatures, then say the hard and stony corals. So it was surprising in that respect.”

Dr. Lopez said we are currently experiencing the fourth global bleaching event since the 1990s.

“We have to try to do what we can to lower greenhouse gases and cut back on fossil fuel use, because we know these gases accumulate in the atmosphere and trap heat, and the heat goes into the ocean,” Dr. Lopez said.

Octocorals are soft corals that resemble sea fans or branching plants and are very abundant off Florida’s coral reefs. They provide three-dimensional habitat to marine life and play a critical role in nutrient cycling and supporting biodiversity.

Although we all welcome a quiet hurricane season, storms often churn up deep water and can help lower ocean temperatures.

Our seas have been mainly calm this year.

Pollution and water runoff can also contribute to coral bleaching. But warm water temperatures, especially what we’ve seen this summer sustained in the upper 80s, are believed to be the biggest factor.

“We have to stop pressing the snooze button because we keep on doing this every year and every decade,” Dr. Lopez said. “Every bleaching event is telling us this is a problem. Temperatures are rising. Can we do something about it?”

Dr. Lopez and his team plan to get back in the water in a few weeks to get another look at whether some of the octocorals are recovering.