Limited Coral Bleaching in Warrah

The Kuwaiti diving team affiliated with the Environmental Volunteer Mubarakah Association confirmed today (Wednesday) that the coral bleaching rate at the Arifjan site is very low and falls within the normal annual range. Mahmoud Ashkanani, the team’s environmental projects manager, said the team continues to monitor the coral and its reefs, particularly following the end of the peak marine heat stress period, which began on July 21 and lasted until late August last year. He explained that inspections revealed the damage was confined to four coral species. He added that the team detected “black band disease” in one coral colony, which appears as a distinct band separating living and dead tissue. Ashkanani noted that rising water temperatures are a factor that promotes microbial growth, clarifying that “heat stress and deteriorating water quality reduce coral immunity, making it susceptible to bacterial attacks.”