Biri buds resemble makeshift traffic cones and at first glance they may not look like much. Yet they can do a world of difference in stressed marine ecosystems. The buds are named after the Philippine island where a small group of environmentalists has been trying out a type of artificial reef in the surrounding waters and…

When we think of oceans, we tend to think of calming azure waters, eye-catching corals and a Poseidon’s cornucopia of marine species. We rarely think of disease. We might as well begin to do that, though. Here’s why: Oceans, say scientists, are becoming conduits of disease worldwide. The main culprit…

We are what we eat, a saying goes. We are also what we do. And what we do is continue to pollute our oceans and wind up eating poisoned fish as a result. There is some irony in that: the pollutants that we release wantonly into our seas often end…

Coral bleaching. The very term evokes something ominous – and an ominous development it indeed is. As water temperatures rise, often as a result of climate change-triggered heat waves, corals (fragile creatures as they are) begin to turn white. That’s because warmer water temperatures cause corals to shed the zooxanthellae…

Heat waves. Droughts. Forest fires. Crop failures. Water shortages. This year’s El Nino, which could potentially become one of the most severe outbreaks of the periodic weather phenomenon in recent history, may bring plenty of misfortune for Malaysians across the country, from Sarawak to Kedah. Because of what this weather…