GCRMN_COI_2017-Western Indian Ocean Reef Status

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Coral reef status report for the Western Indian Ocean (2017) Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network 1.3.5 Discussion On a global scale, the 2015-16 coral bleaching event is considered the longest event in history 6 . It has affected more reefs than any previous global bleaching event, including several reefs that have never bleached before e.g. the northernmost Great Barrier Reef. Although the WIO experienced widespread and severe bleaching consistent with that experienced in other regions, most of the region was spared the high coral mortality experienced in other parts of the world, as well as the devastating mortality caused by past events such as that of 1998. There are several possible reasons that might explain why the majority of corals were able to recover from the bleaching they experienced, and as a result mortality was lower than expected in 2016: • Sudden regional cooling from April onwards reducing duration of thermal stress – cyclone Fantala cooled waters north of the Mascarene islands in the southern Seychelles islands during April, and may have had a widespread effect; • Acclimation by corals exposed to three progressively hotter years, starting in 2014; • Adaptation and selection from the 1998 bleaching event and subsequent minor bleaching events; • Loss of vulnerable genotypes and populations since 1998, leading to lower diversity but more resistant coral communities. 1.3.6 Recommendations The following recommendations can be made, focused on network support, capacity building and knowledge generation: Network support REGIONAL CHAPTERS 1. increased participation in national and regional bleaching data collection should be prioritized, with a lead role played by the national Coral Reef Task Force (CRTF) coordinators; 2. bleaching observations should be reported online to broader national and regional contexts. The WIO bleaching resources at http://bit.ly/2kCktuw and http://cordioea. net/bleaching_resilience/io-coral-bleaching-alert/should continue to be maintained by CORDIO; 3. ensure that each country has at least one partner mandated and sufficiently prepared to carry out bleaching response plans where feasible; 4. ensure that the lessons learned from the 2016 event are used to inform and improve the planning and preparation for monitoring bleaching for the next event; 5. Formulate steps to improve involvement and capacity of national institutions to undertake bleaching response plans 6 http://www.noaa.gov/media-release/el-ni-o-prolongs-longest-global-coral-bleaching-event. Accessed 20 November 2016 34
Coral reef status report for the Western Indian Ocean (2017) Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network Capacity building and key technical skills 6. Continue to organise and/or support training workshops aimed at building capacity for coral bleaching monitoring and assessment in preparation for the next event; 7. Increase capacity of national institutions, researchers and CRTF to identify coral at a genus level; 8. Hold training workshops for ground-truthing of remote sensing images, image analysis and GIS reporting. Knowledge 9. Use remote sensing to map bleaching, especially in collaboration within the footprint of the SEAS-OI initiative (la Reunion) to provide satellite images for IOC member countries. 10. Organise and fund a resilience study to better understand the factors that affect reefs’ ability to resist or survive and recover from bleaching; 11. Commission more research to study how bleaching impacts fish communities in the medium-term. 1.3.7 Data contributors Organisation African Impact Albion Fisheries Research Centre, Mauritius andBeyond Arocha Kenya BECOMING Project 2016 Blue Ventures – Comoros Blue Ventures Cerf Island Conservation Programme Chumbe Island Coral Park (CHICOP) Comoros CRMN CORDIO EA Cousine Island Observers Connie, Celeste Alex Botha, Karin Vikash Munbodhe Mnemba Island Dive and Conservation Team Peter Musembi MAREX/Institut de Recherche et de Développement/Université de La Réunion/Agence des Aires Marines Protégées/Parc Naturel Marin de Mayotte/Parc Naturel Marin des Glorieuses/ Terres Australes et Antarctiques Françaises/ Réserve Naturelle Marine de La Réunion/Réserve Nationale Naturelle de Bouzi/DEAL Réunion/Union européenne (Xème FED régional océan Indien)/ Initiative Française pour Les Récifs Coralliens. Sarah Freed Abigail Leadbeater, Katrina Dewar Savinien Leblond Enock Kayagambe, Ulli Kloiber Jaffar mouhhidine, Mathieu, Mouchtadi Mmadi David Obura, Melita Samoilys, Mishal Gudka Nina, Paul Anstey REGIONAL CHAPTERS 35
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GCRMN_COI_2017-Western Indian Ocean Reef Status

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