The Sea Silence Moans

On an unusual evening, the sea no longer reflected a soothing orange glow. It was moody. Beneath the rippling waves, more than 80 per cent of the world’s coral reefs were pale. Not from fear, but from dying.

Scientists are calling it the ‘fourth global bleaching event.’ But unlike before, this one is longer and more widespread. “This is the largest and most severe coral reef bleaching in history,” says Dr Derek Manzello of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), May 2025. His voice is calm, but his tone is one of sounding the death knell for fragile marine ecosystems.

Guardians of Life

Coral reefs are not just colourful rocks on the seafloor. They are the guardians of life. Between the coral crevices, billions of creatures depend on life-fish, molluscs, even coastal humans. “Once they turn white, we lose more than just colour. We lose lives,” says Dr Putu Laksmi, a marine biologist from Bali who has been observing coral degradation since 1998.

This death did not come suddenly. It’s the result of warming seas, the result of humans greedily burning the earth. Sea surface temperatures that exceed the threshold of tolerance make corals repel zooxanthellae – microscopic algae that provide them with food and colour. The result: bleaching. Then slowly, death.

Sea Silent Moans

In Bondalem, North Bali, where divers were once greeted by colourful marine life, it is now a museum of ecological disaster. “I’m like swimming over a graveyard,”’ says I Wayan Darma, a local dive instructor who has lost half his income as foreign visitors have stopped coming.

However, amidst the darkness, there are still candles burning. Some initiatives such as local community-led coral restoration are trying to plant new hope. The Singapore government even claims it will plant 100,000 corals in 10 years. But will it be enough?

“Restoration is important, but it’s like putting plasters on a bullet wound. As long as greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise, bleaching will continue,” said Dr Sylvia Earle, legendary oceanographer, in an interview.

We don’t need more data. We need decisions. Coral reefs are nature’s alarm clock. They tell us that the earth is running a fever, and the heat is killing. If we don’t listen, then maybe one day, our children will only know coral reefs from pictures in dull books, not from the experience of diving in a living blue sea. (Wage Erlangga)

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