Image: NOAA
A federal agency has proposed listing 66 species of coral under the Endangered Species Act, which would bolster protections of the animals.
The proposed listing comes after a 2009 petition by the Center for Biological Diversity, an environmental group, asserting that the federal government needed to do more to protect coral species.
Under the proposal, the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) would list seven coral species as endangered and 52 as threatened in the Pacific, with five endangered and two threatened in the Caribbean.
The listing could lead to further protections for areas where these corals live, perhaps earning them designation as "critical habitat." Such a step would restrict commercial activities in the areas, while preventing any trade or harvesting of the corals.
"Corals provide habitat to support fisheries that feed millions of people; generate jobs and income to local economies through recreation, tourism and fisheries; and protect coastlines from storms and erosion," said NOAA administrator Jane Lubchenco in a statement from the agency.
"Yet, scientific research indicates that climate change and other activities are putting these corals at risk. This is an important, sensible next step toward preserving the benefits provided by these species, both now and into the future."
NOAA has identified 19 threats to the survival of coral, including ocean acidification, rising ocean temperatures and coral diseases. As the concentration of carbon dioxide increases in the atmosphere, the oceans warm beyond what corals can withstand, leading to coral bleaching and eventually to die-offs.
Before the proposed listing is finalized in late 2013, the agency will hold 18 public meetings during a 90-day public comment period.
- Colorful Creations: Incredible Coral
- Gallery: Creatures from the Census of Marine Life
- Images: Trip to the Coral Triangle
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4 Comments
Add CommentIn one of the most unexplored areas of the Earth, they claim knowledge that these things are going extinct? Oh wait, they just said they were only doing it to bolster protections, not because they were actually endangered. They even invent a phrase to apply wherever they want: "critical habitat."
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisOK, so in nature thing's have been going extinct for millions of years because of climate change, That's right Millions of years because the climate has been changing for Billions of years.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisIt's called Nature, and it's Natural, but we must change it, or at least charge people to pollute, then it's OK.
Last year there were 258 new species discovered, maybe something is changing on purpose???????
I'll think you'll find that close monitoring and conservation can protect species that we, the human race, are contributing to destroy, take the White Rhino for instance. Granted the worlds climate has been shifting for millions of years, however the acceleration is moving exponentially due our excesses. Small steps in the way of conservation are always a step in the right direction.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisGlobal warming deniers are a hoax, these comments could not possibly be made by actual people because no sane person could possibly deny what they can see every day nor what Climatology, Oceanography, Biology, Physics and Chemistry, and numerous other disciplines have documented so they must be some other, unknown, form of computer-generated gibberish.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThis phenomenon, non-sensical strings of words mimicking ravings and rantings, should be studied by computer scientists to find the origin. My personal opinion is that somebody let their lizard crawl across their keyboards but this is only a theory. It may be that we will never find out the origin of these strings but that shouldn't stop us from trying, the quest for knowledge and the application of intelligence should never be afraid of the unknown or the unknowing.