Reflection

This piece is inspired by coral bleaching. While I was researching the theme of marine loss, I was saddened to learn that coral bleaching is in some ways worse than I had realized: I didn’t know, for example, that deep-water corals can be as susceptible to warming waters as shallower corals and that the two types cannot supplement one another, or that toxic runoff from agriculture can impact reef health in addition to water temperature. Massive bleaching events are becoming more common each year, even in reefs as prolific as the Great Barrier. I think that it’s an issue that can be overlooked because corals are a less endearing subject than sea turtles or otters, so I was inspired to draw about it. The background of my piece features very dense coral formations with a variety of species, such as brain coral and staghorn coral, to show the scale of what we lose to bleaching events. The figure in the middle of the drawing represents hope. I read several stories about reef restoration that involved breeding and planting healthy young corals, as well as a few studies about the fact that corals that did survive die-offs generally produced stronger future generations, which helped the reef bounce back later. As the figure walks through the reef, she represents how reefs can come back as long as there are a few living corals left. Going forward, I will do my best to spread the word about the precarious nature of our reefs.