International Journal of Aquaculture, 2025, Vol.15, No.2, 67-75 http://www.aquapublisher.com/index.php/ija 67 Review and Progress Open Access Coral Reef Conservation: Challenges and Advances in Protecting Coral Reef Ecosystems Wenzhong Huang Biomass Research Center, Hainan Institute of Tropical Agricultural Resources, Sanya, 572025, Hainan, China Corresponding email: wenzhong.huang@hitar.org International Journal of Aquaculture, 2025, Vol.15, No.2 doi: 10.5376/ija.2025.15.0008 Received: 20 Feb., 2025 Accepted: 25 Mar., 2025 Published: 30 Mar., 2025 Copyright © 2025 Huang, This is an open access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Preferred citation for this article: Huang W.Z., 2025, Coral reef conservation: challenges and advances in protecting coral reef ecosystems, International Journal of Aquaculture, 15(2): 67-75 (doi: 10.5376/ija.2025.15.0008) Abstract This study provides a comprehensive review of the current status and functions of coral reef conservation, exploring the theoretical foundations of coral reef ecosystems, the major challenges they face, and emerging technologies and innovative practices in restoration and protection. By analyzing case studies such as the Great Barrier Reef, the Tablas Strait in the Philippines, and coral restoration projects in the Maldives, the study highlights the diversity and complexity of coral reef conservation in the context of climate change. The paper also emphasizes the socioeconomic dimensions of coral reef conservation, including community engagement, ecotourism, and sustainable development strategies. Furthermore, it proposes the need to strengthen international cooperation, implement carbon reduction policies, and apply emerging technologies to enhance the resilience and long-term sustainability of coral reef ecosystems. This study aims to provide systematic insights and policy recommendations for global coral reef conservation, contributing to the continued health and sustainability of marine ecosystems. Keywords Coral reef conservation; Climate change; Marine protected areas; MPAs; Coral bleaching; Ecological restoration 1 Introduction Coral reefs are often called “the tropical rainforest in the ocean” because they feed many species of marine life. Although coral reefs account for less than 0.1% of the ocean area, they are home to about a quarter of marine species, such as fish, shrimps, crabs and other marine animals, cannot do without them (Nama, 2020). Coral reefs are not only useful to the ecology, they are also important to humans. There are hundreds of millions of people around the world who rely on them to make a living, work or live. For example, coral reefs help protect coastlines, support tourism, and provide food resources such as fish (Drury and Lirman, 2017). They are mainly distributed in tropical and subtropical oceans, with famous areas including the Great Barrier Reef, the Coral Triangle and the Caribbean (Sheikh, 2024). But now, coral reefs are facing many problems, mainly due to human activities and climate change. Such as seawater heat, ocean acidification, water pollution, random fishing and destructive fishing methods, can cause coral bleaching and even death (Hoegh-Guldberg et al., 2017). Especially climate change has a particularly great impact on coral reefs. Some scientists predict that if the situation does not improve, most tropical reefs may disappear between 2040 and 2050. This is not just a natural problem, it will also affect many people. There are currently about 500 million people rely on coral reefs to get food, income or coastal protection. If corals disappear, their lives will also be greatly affected (Montesny et al., 2021). This study is intended to emphasize the importance of coral reefs and illustrate how urgent the protection is. We will first introduce the distribution of coral reefs and their role in the ecology, and then talk about the main threats they are facing. Next, we will introduce some latest progress in conservation work and discuss future research directions and policy recommendations, hoping to help these valuable marine ecosystems better recover and survive. 2 Current Status and Functions of Coral Reef Ecosystems 2.1 Ecological diversity and community composition of coral reefs Coral reefs are one of the places with the most species of organisms in the ocean. Because of its particularly
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