Ningaloo Reef Coral Bleaching Crisis

Current Situation

• Location: 260km-long Ningaloo Reef, Western Australia’s north-west coast
• Affected Areas: Multiple sites including
  • Turquoise Bay
  • Coral Bay
  • Tantabiddi
  • Bundegi (Exmouth Gulf)

Environmental Conditions

• Marine heatwave ongoing since September 2024
• Ocean temperatures: 1.5°C above average over five months
• Previous bleaching event: 2022
• Related incident: ~30,000 fish died in Pilbara coast (January 2025)

Scientific Context

• Marine heatwaves now 100 times more likely due to climate change
• Almost 90% of marine heatwaves attributed to human-caused global heating
• Coral recovery typically requires about a decade without new threats
• Rapid successive bleaching events can lead to permanent reef death

WA Today