Showing 1 - 10 of 115
Three-year heatwave ‘bleached half the planet’s coral reefs’
AFP, Published on 10/02/2026
» PARIS - A study published on Tuesday showed that more than half of the world’s coral reefs were bleached between 2014 and 2017 — a record-setting episode now being eclipsed by another series of devastating heatwaves.
Cook Islands wages war on 'plague' of hungry starfish
AFP, Published on 24/07/2025
» RAROTONGA (COOK ISLANDS) — Divers clutch wooden spears as they plunge beneath the waves, hunting hordes of hungry starfish destroying the coral reefs around the Cook Islands.
US to leave Unesco, citing ‘national interest’
AFP, Published on 22/07/2025
» PARIS - The United States said Tuesday it would quit Unesco, saying the UN cultural and education agency, best known for establishing world heritage sites, is biased against Israel and promotes “divisive” causes.
In a hotter future, what comes after coral reefs die?
AFP, Published on 02/06/2025
» PARIS - The fate of coral reefs has been written with a degree of certainty rare in climate science: at 1.5 degrees Celsius of global warming, most are expected to die.
Coral reefs pushed to brink as bleaching crisis worsens
AFP, Published on 23/04/2025
» PARIS — An unprecedented coral bleaching episode has spread to 84% of the world's reefs in an unfolding human-caused crisis that could kill off swathes of the essential ecosystems, scientists warned Wednesday.
‘Unprecedented’ mass bleaching ruins Australian reef
AFP, Published on 26/03/2025
» SYDNEY - An “unprecedented” mass bleaching event has been recorded off Australia’s western coast, scientists said on Wednesday, turning huge swathes of a celebrated reef system a sickly dull white.
Post-cyclone Mayotte faces biodiversity crisis
AFP, Published on 27/12/2024
» DZAOUDZI, Mayotte - Mayotte has changed beyond recognition since a cyclone devastated the Indian Ocean territory, sparking an environment and biodiversity crisis that could last for a decade or more, scientists say.
Philippines summons Chinese envoy over sea confrontations
AFP, Published on 11/12/2023
» MANILA - The Philippines said it had summoned China's envoy on Monday and flagged the possibility of expelling him following the most tense confrontations between the countries' vessels in years at flashpoint reefs in the disputed South China Sea.
Volunteer divers guard Oman's 'unique' coral reefs
AFP, Published on 04/12/2023
» DAYMANIYAT ISLANDS (OMAN) - On a sailing boat anchored off Oman's pristine Daymaniyat Islands, volunteer divers pull on wetsuits, check their scuba tanks and then take turns plunging into the clear turquoise water.
Philippines accuses Chinese coastguard of firing water cannon at resupply boat
AFP, Published on 10/11/2023
» MANILA - The Philippines accused the Chinese coast guard Friday of firing water cannon at a boat carrying provisions to Filipino troops on a remote outpost in the disputed South China Sea.