Bleaching in SW Indian Ocean

[Bernard A. THOMASSIN]

Dears,
Contrarily to the nice girls who tan with the sun, after the Kenya and La Réunion I. (Michel Pichon's record), the hard corals began to bleach at Mayotte I., Comoro Archipelago, north middle of the Mozambique Channel (13° S), as we expected few days ago.
The bleaching started by the southern area of the island (the side exposed to the tradewinds, but also the part of the lagoon the more enclosed), when the north (more opened to the oceanic waters, with waters a little bit cooler) is not yet affected. One of our guy is on the field to observe the phenomenon and made seawater analysis, help by the scuba diver clubs and the Fisheries and Marine Environmental Office we created there in 1988. The survey will be pursued until June, to have a general idea of the impact and recovering.

For those who want to have general informations of these coral reefs and their conservation, a paper just issued (in French !, sorry) in the scuba divers journal "La plongée - Océans", n° 242, Mars-Avril 1998, n° ISSN 0475 171X.

All informations coming from Aldabra group (Southern Seychelles), Comoro Islands and Mozambique coast (Delagoa Cap) will be wellcomed. Thanks for your cooperation.
"Amicalement vôtre"
Bernard A. Thomassin