In areas where coral cover expanded, it was mostly fast-growing...

In areas where coral cover expanded, it was mostly fast-growing Acropora corals driving the growth, a potentially troubling prospect given that Acropora are particularly vulnerable to strong waves generated by tropical cyclones, highly susceptible to bleaching, and the preferred target of crown-of-thorns starfish.“This means that large increases in hard coral cover can quickly be negated by disturbances on reefs where Acropora corals predominate,” AIMS monitoring program team leader Mike Emslie said in a statement. “The increasing frequency of warming ocean temperatures and the extent of mass bleaching events highlights the critical threat climate change poses to all reefs, particularly while crown-of-thorns starfish outbreaks and tropical cyclones are also occurring.”