Experts say that coral populations are severely endangered by the invasion

Oct 2, 2012 09:33 GMT  ·  By
Aerial view of a portion of the Great Barrier Reef, off the coasts of Australia
   Aerial view of a portion of the Great Barrier Reef, off the coasts of Australia

An invasion of coral-eating sea stars is causing extensive damage to Australia's Great Barrier Reef, the largest ensemble of corals in the world. The conclusion belongs to a new scientific paper, released today, October 2.

Scientists from the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) published the details of their study in a paper entitled “The 27 Year Decline of Coral Cover on the Great Barrier Reef and its Causes.”

According to the team, the intervention by the Australian and Queensland Governments is essential for safeguarding the area, and ensuring that the Acanthaster planci sea star, also known as the crown-of-thorns starfish, does not decimate the extensive reefs.

The Great Barrier Reef is one of the most important biodiversity hot spots in the world, and is home to numerous species that can only thrive at this location. Any damage it suffers has extensive repercussions on food webs and ecosystemic interactions, researchers say.

The reason why this particular starfish was able to multiply to such an extent that it poses a real threat to the coral reefs is because the waters surrounding Australia are heavily polluted with chemical fertilizers, which promote this creature's development.

WWF-Australia argues that failing to take action in this regard would have a massive negative impact on the corals, which are already threatened by increasing water temperatures and ocean acidification.

In their new study, the AIMS researchers reveal that the Great Barrier Reef lose more than 50 percent of its entire coral cover since the 1980s. In other words, half of these organisms died within 30 years.

Another conclusion of the study was that half of the entire reef is either dead or dying. The Crown of Thorns starfish is responsible for much of this decline. This finding settles a long-standing debate on the human factors that cause the most damage to the GBR.

“Previously, there was disagreement within the scientific community as to whether chemical fertilizer and Crown of Thorns starfish were the main culprits in the decline of the Reef,” WWF-Australia spokesman, Nich Heath, explains.

“Today's scientific paper brings together those scientists with previously opposing views and the verdict is now beyond reasonable doubt,” he goes on to say.