One day, the Mysticals were sitting in Felix’s garden, munching on some delicious fruit. Scorch was trying to convince her friends to play a game of catch but Orak was engrossed in his book while Verum was drowsy.
Scorch turned to Felix. She said, “Just one game, Felix, please!”
Felix chuckled and said, “Okay, Scorchie!”
But just then, Musca, the MysticBeast, flew through the air and landed on Felix’s shoulder. It muttered something into his ears. Felix’s eyes widened as a smile spread across his face. His wings fluttered in excitement and carried him away as Felix announced, “Mysticals! Parts of the Great Barrier Reef have shown the highest coral cover in 36 years! Whoopie!”
Scorch shook her head and said, “Just like Felix to literally get carried away by his excitement.”
Once he returned to the ground, Felix narrated the good news to his friends, “You must have heard about the Great Barrier Reef. Located near Australia, it is the largest coral reef in the world and runs for about 2,300 kilometers. There, you can see the water was teeming with marine life – shoals of fishes and colonies of corals all coexisted in harmony. It’s known for its biodiversity.
Unfortunately, all this biodiversity is in danger! Due to global warming, the water temperatures rise. When the water becomes too warm, corals release certain algae. These algae give them their life and bright colors. Without it, the corals turn completely white. This process is called coral bleaching.
Until 2016, only two mass bleaching events were ever recorded. But since then, there have been four such events. The latest one was in March, the first to take place during La Niña. The water was supposed to be cool!
Despite this, things aren’t as bleak as they seem. According to a study by the Australian Institute of Marine Science, the hard coral cover increased between August 2021 and May 2022 in the north and central parts of the Great Barrier Reef.
This means that the reef healed from the mass bleaching events. But the progress could be undone if we don’t deal with the threat of climate change.”
“Oh, then, we absolutely must!” said Orak.
“There is still hope,” said Verum.