Posts mislead on impact of climate change on Australia's Great Barrier Reef

Updated on 17/08/2022 at 11:06

Social media posts appear to downplay the damage climate change can cause coral reefs by comparing two tweets -- one from 2014 about scientists' predictions that warming oceans would harm Australia's Great Barrier Reef, and one from 2022 about a rebound in coral growth there. However, the comparison is misleading. Scientists say that despite an increase in coral at the vast UNESCO heritage site, it remains at risk of cyclone damage, extinction of rare species and bleaching as a result of warming oceans.