#Status of Coral Reefs 2002 - International Coral Reef Action Network

Status of Coral Reefs of the World: 2002
highest latitude coral reef (33°48’ N, 127°40’ E) was reported in Iki Island, Nagasaki
Prefecture in 2001. The reef area is about 900m 2 and consists of Favia, Echinophyllia and
Cyphastrea species, which cover 50-90% of the reef. Temperatures range from 13.3°C in
March to 26.5°C in August.
Crown-of-thorn starfish (COTS) appeared to be at outbreak levels in Okinawa Island,
Kerama Islands and Amami Islands in 2001 and 2002. Millions of individual starfish have
been killed by the local municipality and volunteers, but the numbers of COTs appear to
be increasing in Sekisei Lagoon. The coral eating snail, Drupella is still a serious threat to
the coral community in Kochi, Shikoku and Kushimoto, Honshu. In both areas, Drupella
are constantly collected in protected areas by local scientists and volunteers. Miyake Island
is a volcanic island in the Izu Islands, about 200km south of Tokyo. The volcano on Mt. Oyama
erupted repeatedly in 2000 and seriously damaged part of the coral community around the
island by smothering it with volcanic ash and run-off from the land after heavy rain.
Taiwan
Fringing reefs are found in the coastal waters around the southern Hengchun Peninsula,
Lutao, Lanyu, Hsiao-Liuchiu, and Penghu Islands. Patchy fringing reefs occur along the
east and north coasts of Taiwan, where non-reef coral communities are more common.
Tungsha Island is an atoll in the northern part of the South China Sea. Taiping Island is a
tropical reef island in the Spratlys in the South China Sea.
Reef Check data from 8 localities in Taiwan including Northeastern coast, I-lan County,
Eastern coast, Hengchun Peninsula, Penghu Islands, Hsiao-Liuchiu, Lutao, and Lanyu
from 1997 to 2002 show that coral cover at 5 sites was higher than 50% indicating reefs
were in relatively good condition. Coral cover at 9 other sites was between 25 and 50%
indicating reefs under possible stresses. Cover at the remaining 16 sites was below 25%
indicating severe damage to these reefs, hence their poor condition. Coral cover was
highest (50-75%) at Lutao, an offshore island on southeast Taiwan, however, cover on the
northeastern coast, I-lan County, Hsiao-Liuchiu Island, and Penghu Islands was below
25%, as a result of localised damage. The low abundance of fishes and indicator
invertebrates organisms suggest that most reefs were over-fished. In addition, sediment
accumulation was evident and numerous discarded fishing nets were found at most localities
indicating that coral reefs in Taiwan were under severe threats from human activities.
Most of the reefs remain in a similar condition as that reported in 1998 and 2000,
although several reef sites in Nanwan Bay, southern Taiwan and Penghu Islands were
heavily damaged by typhoons in 2001. No COTS have been reported during Reef Check
surveys of Taiwan’s reefs in 2002, and very few cases of predation by gastropods were
recorded. Coral predators are not making a significant impact on coral reefs in Taiwan.
Korea
There are no ‘typical’ coral reefs formed by reef building corals in Korean waters, however,
there are distinct soft coral reefs with tropical and subtropical elements at Jejudo on the
southern tip of Korea. A branch of the warm Kuroshio current passes through the
southern part of the Jejudo and this brings 127 coral species to Korea. There are 97
species found on Jejudo, 65 coral species are restricted to the Jeju area, and 15 coral
156