Climate Change Threatens Half of Atlantic Coral Species

A recent study involving researchers from UNAM’s Institute of Marine Sciences and Limnology (ICML) warns that over half of the Atlantic’s coral species are endangered by a growing combination of threats—including climate change, disease, pollution, and other human-driven impacts.

In healthy reef ecosystems, corals serve as foundational structures—similar to building blocks—supporting the development of marine vegetation and organisms.

“Coral reefs are the most diverse marine ecosystems. They host more species than any other ocean habitat,” said Lorenzo Álvarez Filip, a researcher at the Academic Unit for Reef Systems in Puerto Morelos, Quintana Roo.

Published in PLOS One, the study—titled Half of Atlantic Reef-Building Corals at Elevated Risk of Extinction Due to Climate Change and Other Threats https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0309354 —also included UNAM researchers Rosa Rodríguez Martínez and Anastazia Banaszak.