Reefs are home to millions of animals—at least 25 percent of all fish species. These underwater worlds are so lush that they’ve become known as the rain forests of the sea. But just as rain forests are in trouble on land, all is not well beneath the waves. Worldwide, half of all reefs have vanished, and the rest could be extinct by mid-century. Half the coral in U.S. waters is in fair to poor health. Staghorn and elkhorn coral are now on the endangered species list, the first corals ever.
If reefs disappear, we lose a source of extraordinary beauty and biodiversity. We also lose an underwater buffer that holds back waves during hurricanes; a nursery for fish that feed a billion people around the world and provide 200 million jobs in the fishing industry; a home for plants and animals used to treat cancer, HIV, and other diseases; and an estimated $105 billion a year from tourist revenue in the Caribbean alone. The threat to coral is a threat to all of us.
