Scientists report ‘major decline’ of Great Barrier Reef coral

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Slideshow: Take a virtual diveSee dozens of wonders from the Great Barrier Reef and other other exotic seascapes, courtesy of the Catlin Seaview Survey.Launch slideshowBy Miguel Llanos, NBC NewsCalling it the most extensive review of how coral on Australia's Great Barrier Reef is faring, scientists on Monday reported some alarming news: The amount of coral covering reefs there has been cut in half since 1985 and will likely continue to decline unless steps are taken to at least attack the easiest of several factors.

"We show a major decline in coral cover from 28 percent to 13.8 percent" of the entire system, the experts wrote after reviewing 2,258 surveys of 214 reefs within the marine sanctuary.

"Two-thirds of that decline has occurred since 1998," they added.

John Bruno, a coral expert who was not part of the study, called the findings "really grim" and reflecting loss even higher than deforestation in the tropics, a topic that generally gets much more attention.




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