| Okinawa, Japan, East China Sea |
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| Okinawa is home to over 90% of Japan's coral reef population. However Okinawa has a history littered with incidents that have meant disaster for coral reefs. Unfortunately the area has been plagued by outbreaks of the coral eating crown of thorns starfish, the 1998 bleaching event hit these reefs particularly hard, heavy tourism, and excessive developments on land have also caused sedimentation problems. |
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 The crown of thorns starfish (Acanthaster planci) devastates reef ecosystems by eating all coralline species it comes across. Photo courtesy of FBNMS, NOAA. These accumulating factors meant coral cover was lower than ever. Populations of fish dropped dramatically and this had serious consequences for those communities that rely on fish for subsistence and trade. |
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| Attempts have been made to preserve the remaining corals. Large developments now have regulations dictating the way they build to reduce soil runoff for instance. With these precautions in place some corals are now showing signs of recovery. |
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