CORAL BLEACHING When corals face stress by changes in conditions such as
temperature, light, or nutrients, they expel the symbiotic algae
zooxanthellae living in their tissues, causing them to turn completely white. This phenomenon is called coral bleaching.
The pale white colour is of the translucent tissues of
calcium carbonate which are visible due to the loss of pigment producing zooxanthellae.
Coral bleaching is known to be responsible for killing approximately
18% of the world’s coral reefs.
