Great Barrier Reef bleaching crisis 'like a bushfire underwater'

Marine biologist Anne Hoggett inspects bleached and dead coral around Lizard Island on the Great Barrier Reef, which is suffering its worst bleaching event ever, on 5 April 2024. © AFP - DAVID GRAY

It’s too soon to tell if the heat-stressed corals of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef will survive their fifth mass bleaching in eight years, but the marine scientists who monitor the reef’s health are already despairing.

Species of coral typically resistant to bleaching are also struggling after the latest marine heatwave brought sea surface temperatures to a peak of 2.5°C above average.