What makes coral reefs bleach?
Too much or too little sunlight and excessively warm or cold water temperatures can bleach coral reefs. Coral is in fact composed of thousands of tiny animals called polyps. As the polyps feed and grow, they create calcium deposits that serve as a skeleton. The hard, white structure we recognize as coral is actually the skeleton of thousands of little polyps. Coral reefs are extremely sensitive to temperature change, even within 2 degrees, and will die if disturbed. Because the color of a coral reef is created from the tissue color of living polyps, through death coral becomes bleached and white as they display the calcium skeleton beneath.
