Udel, D. (2022, January 25). Sediments a likely culprit in spread of deadly disease on Florida coral reefs, study finds. Phys.org. Retrieved February 6, 2022, from https://phys.org/news/2022-01-sediments-culprit-deadly-disease-florida.html
Stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD) was first noticed in the coral in Florida in 2014. Since then it has spread through Florida’s coral reef and the Caribbean and has affected over 20 different species of coral. Researchers from the University of Miami found that seafloor sediment might be the cause of this outbreak. They tested this theory by bringing healthy coral in contact with this sediment. Within 24 hours it was clear that the coral was infected with SCTLD from the sediment.
I find it interesting that this disease has been spreading and killing millions of coral for years and scientists could not figure out how until now. This discovery is a huge accomplishment because now that we know how this is spreading, scientists can take this information to figure out how to treat this disease or stop the spread before more coral and species are harmed. Hopefully this new information will prevent many coral and other species from dying.
I think that this research is very cool because I did not know that SCTLD was an issue and that it causes a huge detriment to our coral reefs. I agree that this finding is a very positive step towards treating coral. Do you think that scientists can find a solution fast enough? And if they do, could the reefs recover fully or are they too destroyed?
Thank you for your comment. I am hopeful that scientists will be able to find a solution to stop the spread of this disease because they identified it in such a short amount of time. I am not sure if the reefs already effected will be able to fully recover, however many other coral reefs can be saved before the disease reaches them.