What Coral Reefs tell us about Climate Change
This week, Anjani Ganase, marine biologist, shares new knowledge about Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. With a relatively newer history, Caribbean reefs and first peoples may have information important to survival on our islands; it’s time to observe and research our own environment and record the traditional stories. This feature was first published in the Tobago Newsday, on Thursday November 3, 2016. Follow Anjani on twitter @AnjGanase The Great Barrier Reef (GBR), one of the largest natural structures on planet Earth, is visible from space. This natural wonder is about 2300 km long and 344 400 km 2 in area, larger than the UK, Switzerland and The Netherlands combined. It is one of the most diverse ecosystems in the world, home to as many as 6000 marine organisms, including species of corals, invertebrates, fish, marine mammals, sharks and turtles. The reef is also ancient, over 500,000 years old; over this time the edge of Australia’s continental shelf and th...