The Great Barrier Reef fared better during an oceanic heat wave last year than during sizzling weather a year earlier that caused hundreds of miles of corals to bleach, according to a study published Monday that suggests the massive structure may be growing more tolerant to climate change. The report in the journal Nature Climate Change analyzed how corals along the Great Barrier fared in back-to-back mass bleaching events. During the first event, which scientists likened to an underwater apocalypse, almost 30 percent of the reef died. “The good news is the Barrier Reef glass is still half-full,” said Terry Hughes, a lead author of the study and the director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies. Other, more vulnerable species were wiped out in some parts of the reef early on.

Source: Huffington Post December 10, 2018 15:56 UTC