[Coral-List] Bleaching on Oahu, Hawaii

Mark Eakin - NOAA Federal mark.eakin at noaa.gov
Tue Oct 7 14:30:18 EDT 2014


You can keep track of what the thermal stress is doing in the Main Hawaiian Islands as well as the even hotter Northwestern Hawaiian Islands at:
http://coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/regions/index.php

Cheers,
Mark


On Oct 7, 2014, at 12:39 AM, Cindy Hunter <cindyh at hawaii.edu> wrote:

> A coral bleaching event is developing on Oahu, Hawaii, as reported to the
> State’s Eyes of the Reef website on September 21st, 2014. This is the first
> major coral bleaching event in the Main Hawaiian Islands since 1996 and is
> impacting 60-90% of all dominant coral species in near-shore shallow waters
> of windward Oahu (primarily, in order of apparent sensitivity: Pocillopora
> damicornis, Pocillopora meandrina, Montipora capitata, Montipora spp.,
> Porites evermanni, P. lobata, and P. compressa). Additional reports of
> coral bleaching from around the State include the Northwestern Hawaiian
> Islands, as well as other sites on Oahu, Maui and the Big Island (Hawaii).
> Seawater temperatures in Kaneohe Bay, Oahu (NOAA station Moku O Loe) peaked
> at 30.2° on 9-20-14, and have cooled a bit but still hover around 29°, 2
> degrees above the seasonal average for these waters.  Calm sea conditions
> (=high light penetration) prevail and predictions of continued warm waters
> are forecasted for the next 4-6 weeks.
> 
> -- 
> Cynthia Hunter, Ph. D.
> Associate Professor, Department of Biology
> 2450 Campus Road, Dean 108
> University of Hawaii
> Honolulu, HI 96822
> (808) 956-4748
> _______________________________________________
> Coral-List mailing list
> Coral-List at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
> http://coral.aoml.noaa.gov/mailman/listinfo/coral-list


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
C. Mark Eakin, Ph.D.
Coordinator, NOAA Coral Reef Watch
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Center for Satellite Applications and Research
Satellite Oceanography & Climate Division
e-mail: mark.eakin at noaa.gov
url: coralreefwatch.noaa.gov

NOAA Center for Weather and Climate Prediction (NCWCP)
5830 University Research Ct., E/RA32
College Park, MD 20740
Office: (301) 683-3320     Fax: (301) 683-3301
Mobile: (301) 502-8608    SOCD Office: (301) 683-3300

“We have many advantages in the fight against global warming, but time is not one of them. Instead of idly debating the precise extent of global warming, or the precise timeline of global warming, we need to deal with the central facts of rising temperatures, rising waters, and all the endless troubles that global warming will bring. We stand warned by serious and credible scientists across the world that time is short and the dangers are great. The most relevant question now is whether our own government is equal to the challenge." 
Senator John McCain, December 5 2008



More information about the Coral-List mailing list