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Middle East The waters of the Arabian/Persian Gulf experience major variations in temperature from lows of around 15oC to highs of mid-30oC. Thus the corals are adapted to wide fluctuations in temperature (as well as salinity). Extensive bleaching was seen in the Gulf in 1996; and now there has been extensive bleaching over the entire Arabian Gulf and parts of the Arabian Sea in 1998. The Gulf of Oman and Arabian Gulf are subject to considerable upwellings, which lower temperatures and stress corals (which in turn favours the growth of macroalgae). The Red Sea also experiences warm temperatures, but bleaching is an infrequent event and some localised bleaching was seen over several months of mid-1998. There was considerable bleaching in the Red Sea in 1996. Bahrain 1998 was a very hot year on land, and coral bleaching was first observed in mid-August when water temperatures went from 34oC to 37oC in a week, and stayed that way for a few weeks (up to 39oC in shallow areas). There was 100% bleaching from Hayr Shutaya (20 miles north of Bahrain) south to Fasht Al Adhom, and Fasht Al Dibal (all less than 10 m depth). Coral mortality was 90% to 95% a few weeks later, and surviving corals were still bleached in October. Bleaching was estimated at 50 % on Abul Thama (about 50 miles north of Bahrain). There was major bleaching in summer of 1996 when water temperatures were 37.3oC at Fasht Al Dibal and most corals on Fasht Al Adhom bleached then died. Now many of the corals at Abul Thama that survived 1996 have bleached and died. (Roger Uwate) Eritrea Water temperatures around Massawa and Green Island have been extremely high (40 oC ) in August and September, resulting in bleaching on deep and shallow reefs. After the temperatures cooled, most corals recovered to their original state, but some in shallow water have died. No bleaching at all was seen around the islands of Assab. (Marco Pedulli) Oman Extensive bleaching was observed, with temperatures between 29.5oC and 31.5°C, at eight sites around Mirbat, southern Oman, between 22 and 26 May 1998. Between 75% and 95% of Stylophora (the most abundant coral genus) bleached, and 50% of large Porites colonies were partially bleached. About 95% of coral were still living despite losing their zooxanthellae. But no bleaching was observed at Sudh, 40 km to the east of Mirbat, where seawater temperatures varied between 25oC and 25.5°C, nor in the Muscat Area, Gulf of Oman where water temperatures in early June were 30.5°C. Also no bleaching was observed on the Hallaniyat islands, February to April 1998, about 75 km north-east of Sudh. Normally, upwelling during the southeast monsoon drops temperatures to 19ºC. This was described as a pristine area with coral cover from 10% to 90% growing down to 35 m where macroalgae and corals co-exist in waters which vary between very cool to very warm. No recovery of bleached colonies was seen in mid-October when temperatures increased to 25°C after the summer upwelling period. (Robert Baldwin, Simon Wilson, Peter Collinson) Saudi Arabia Widespread coral bleaching was seen on four patch reefs in the Gulf (seawater temperatures 35-36oC) in mid-August, 1998. There was very high mortality (about 95%) in Acropora and other species (especially Platygyra daedalea, a common nearshore coral) that had survived bleaching in 1996. Bleaching was minimal on an offshore island reef with seawater temperature below 34oC. Severe bleaching in 1996 killed high percentages (>90%) of Acropora on neashore platform and patch reefs, as well as damaging the Porites dominated reefs in the north. (Yusef Fadlallah, Reynaldo Lindo) United Arab Emirates (UAE) Bleaching started in a marine protected area off the UAE in 1996, and this year (1998) the entire reef appears to be dead. This used to be a beautiful coral reef. (Fareed Krupp) Yemen (Socotra) Extensive coral bleaching was seen on the islands of Socotra off the Horn of Africa in May, 1998 with high mortality. (Catherine Cheung, Lyndon de Vantier)
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