The effect of global warming on bleaching of coral ecosystems in some islands of the Persian Gulf

Coral reefs provide the important and diverse part of ecosystem biologically. The population of hermatypic coral is declining around the world, in response to various stress factors including increasing sea surface temperatures. The increase of sea surface temperature leads to the collapse of symbiosis life between coral and its symbiont; so the algal colonies leave corals and results in the loss of corals’ colors. The highest threshold of bleaching has been observed in the coral reefs of the Persian Gulf. In this study, the status of the Persian Gulf coral reefs is shown in the Khark, Hendourabi, Kish and Larak Islands from January 2010 to September 2019 by direct observation and photographing. According to the observations, the health of corals has fallen sharply over this period, and there is less than 10% live coral in some parts of the Larak and Hendorabi islands. Despite the exceptional capacity of the Persian Gulf corals to survive over high temperatures compared to other coral reefs, when the temperature exceeds the tolerance threshold, these corals will also be bleached.