Southern reefs survive the hot summer of 2020

Surveys from the AIMS Long Term Monitoring Program have returned good news from the southern Great Barrier Reef, showing offshore reefs suffered little impact from moderate bleaching during the 2019-20 mass coral bleaching event.   

AIMS are closely monitoring the recovery of the reefs, spanning over 490 reefs within the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. 

While the 2019-2020 mass coral bleaching event was the third event in five years, it was the first time such widespread, severe bleaching has occurred in the southern region.

The recovery was observed on six reefs not experiencing crown-of-thorns outbreaks – making the reefs the perfect candidates for scientists to observe their recovery closely. 

Dive into our interactive story map to learn more about the recovery of the southern reefs.   

AIMS’ long term monitoring program has regularly monitored reefs along the Great Barrier Reef for more than 30 years. 

The team will be continuing in-water surveys on the mid-shelf and outer reefs until April. Reports from each survey trip are available on our website.  

Read our media release of the Southern recovery.