At the Limit: Lord Howe Island (IMAGE)

American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

At the Limit: Lord Howe Island

Caption

At the limit: One of the largest groups of reef corals (genus Acropora/Isopora) is at the southernmost extreme of their distribution, Lord Howe Island. Our findings contradict a common hypothesis that reef corals will expand into temperate latitudes in response to ocean warming. With increasing latitude the corals are restricted to ever more shallow depths to maintain adequate levels of light during winter.

Credit

[Credit: Ian Hutton]

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