In rare good news on environment — corals come back to life in India

CHENNAI: In a surprise find scientists have discovered that coral reefs along the Gulf of Mannar off the coast of Tamil Nadu and Palk Bay, which suffered damage by mass bleaching earlier this year, have sprung back to life within a few months. The Gulf of Mannar is a 10,500 sq km biosphere which has 21 islands replete with 128 species of colourful corals.

While studies have shown that coral reefs on the west coast of India in the Gulf of Kutch are bleaching away due to warmer waters, scientists from the National Centre for Coastal Research (NCCR), a laboratory under ministry of earth sciences in Chennai, found that those on the east coast are bouncing back. Underwater images captured by the team showed nearly all damaged corals in Palk Bay have recovered while 85% of corals have regenerated in Gulf of Mannar.