Protect Chagos

The reefs of the Chagos are home to at least 220 species of coral including the endemic brain coral (Ctenella chagius). The coral cover is dense and healthy even in deep water on the steep outer reef slopes. Thick stands of branching Staghorn coral (Acropora sp) protect the low lying islands from wave erosion. Despite the loss of much of the coral in a bleaching event in 1998 the recovery in the Chagos has been remarkable and overall coral cover increases year on year.

For more information about the threats faced by coral reefs worldwide, and why the Chagos reefs are special, please see our Reefs in Crisis page.

This entry was posted on Thursday, February 25th, 2010 at 1:04 am. Both comments and pings are currently closed.