Soft Corals 'Melting' Due To Warming Seas, Expert Says

Soft coral communities in tropical waters may literally be melting away because of bleaching events, which have been dramatically accelerated by global warming, a leading expert says. Unlike their hard coral cousins, soft corals have no stony outer skeletons to leave behind when they die. Instead their fleshy branches extend uncovered from reefs, where they grow alongside hard corals. This means that soft corals simply vanish in response to environmental stresses. "I have observed sites before and after bleaching in Okinawa, Japan, and it was remarkable to see a massive disappearance of soft corals," said marine biologist Hudi Benayahu, head of the Porter School of Environmental Studies at Tel Aviv University...