Great Barrier Reef coral cover falls but researchers remain hopeful
Nearly 30 per cent of coral cover between Proserpine and Cape York has vanished in a single year, but scientists remain buoyed by reef’s proven resilience as annual findings are released
READING LEVEL: ORANGE
The long-term health projections for the Great Barrier Reef remain mixed, with reefs between Proserpine and Cape York – a distance of about 1600 km up the Queensland coast by car – losing nearly 30 per cent of coral cover in 2024. Despite the finding, researchers have said there are positive signs of reef resilience*.
The Australian Institute of Marine Science’s annual coral reef condition report revealed the Great Barrier Reef suffered the single greatest year of coral cover decline ever recorded.
Cyclone Jasper, crown of thorn starfish* outbreaks and an extreme marine heatwave saw hard corals flattened, with the heat-sensitive Acropora species hard hit.
The average hard coral cover in reefs between Proserpine and Cooktown declined from 33.2 per cent to 28.6 per cent in 2024 in a 13.9 per cent decline.
Reefs north of Cooktown saw coral decline from 39.8 per cent coverage in 2024 to 30 per cent in 2025.
But the dramatic drop comes off the back of nearly a decade of unprecedented* coral growth that now leaves Great Barrier Reef coral cover sitting higher than long-term averages.
AIMS researcher Dr Daniela Ceccarelli said disturbances in 2018 meant hearty, pioneering Acropora species exploded.
“From about 2018 until just the winter of 2023/24, we had a period where there weren’t many big disturbances … the fast growing corals (Acropora) started to recolonise* the reef, ” she said.
“These are the ones that were driving this very steep recovery but unfortunately, they’re also really vulnerable*,” she said.
“They get broken first during storms, because they’re a little bit delicate … they are some of the most vulnerable corals to heat stress, and they’re also the preferred food of the crown of thorns starfish.”
Between 1985 and 2018, coral cover shifted by a few per cent each year as longer living, slow-growing corals kept numbers stable, while fast-growing species grew rapidly and declined frequently. But since many heartier species were wiped out, Acropora corals now make up a greater portion of the reef.
The annual report, released last week, surveyed more than 124 reefs, with estimates gathered from “manta-tows,” where scientists were dragged behind a boat to gauge how much of the bottom was covered by hard coral species.
Dr Ceccarelli said unlike other parts of the world, the GBR had proven it can bounce back.
“ Just last year, we had the highest coral cover ever recorded,” she said.
“The Reef still has the resilience to be able to bounce … there’s also lots of potential for recovery.”
But Ms Ceccarelli said like a rejuvenating* forest, reefs need time and fewer disturbances to build back.
“Like a bushfire it burns a bunch of hills to the ground, then the first things you see spring up are grasses and bushes … but it’s not finished growing back into the full biodiversity* of the forest. Coral reefs are exactly the same,” she said.
“They’re (Acropora corals) important not just for the coral cover, but also for lots of things that live on the reef. They are really important for habitat* and for providing homes and food.
“But for recovery to be complete, you need ten or 15 years of no disturbances, so that the sturdier, slower growing corals also have time to grow back.”
POLL
GLOSSARY
- resilience: ability to be happy and successful again after something difficult or bad has happened
- crown of thorns starfish: often referred to as COTS, these large marine invertebrates feed on coral as adults and are native to the Great Barrier Reef
- unprecedented: has never happened or existed in the past
- recolonise: to start to live or grow again in a particular area
- vulnerable: easily hurt or harmed
- rejuvenating: restoring, energising
- biodiversity: the number and types of plants and animals that exist in a particular area
- habitat: natural environment in which an animal or plant usually lives
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QUICK QUIZ
- How far is the distance by car from Proserpine to Cape York?
- What percentage of coral cover did reefs lose in 2024?
- Which coral species began to recolonise the reef from 2018 to 2023/2024?
- How many reefs were surveyed as part of the report?
- What is a “manta-tow”?
LISTEN TO THIS STORY
CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Reef health report
Work in small groups to create a Reef Health Report including the following information. Present your information on a poster or as a written report.
Current condition (healthy, poor, mixed – use data provided in Kids News article).
Main threats (at least two).
Why it matters (to animals, people, economy, culture).
Ideas for solutions (local and global).
Time: allow 20 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Science, Personal and Social, Critical and Creative Thinking
2. Extension
Reflect on the Kids News article by answering the following questions:
- One new thing I learned about the reef is …
- One thing I can do to help protect the reef is …
- I think the future health of the reef will be better/worse/the same because …
Time: allow 15 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Science, Personal and Social, Critical and Creative Thinking
VCOP ACTIVITY
Vocabulary recycle
There is some vivid vocabulary being used in the article, and I am not just talking about the glossary words. Go through the article and highlight the high-level language that you are impressed by in yellow.
See if you can borrow two of these wow words to reuse in your own way.
Remember vocabulary is a great way to connect with the audience, but you need to think about who your audience is so you make great word choices.
Who will the audience be in your recycled sentences?