Coral Bleaching Crisis (2015–2017)

Type: Conservation / environmental crisis Key events: Global bleaching 2015–2017, Jellyfish Lake Palau collapse, Great Barrier Reef mass bleaching

Overview

The 2015–2017 period witnessed the most severe global coral bleaching event on record to that date, driven by an exceptionally powerful El Niño event combined with long-term ocean warming. This crisis had profound implications for the underwater photography community — directly affecting dive destinations, threatening the reef subjects that photographers had documented for decades, and galvanizing conservation-minded photographers into active documentation and advocacy.

The Global Bleaching Event (2015–2017)

An intense El Niño beginning in 2015 pushed ocean temperatures to record levels globally, triggering consecutive years of mass bleaching. The crisis was still ongoing in 2016 and 2017 as temperatures remained elevated. (^[1])

Jellyfish Lake, Palau (2016)

One of the most dramatic single-site collapses documented during the crisis was the near-total disappearance of jellyfish from Jellyfish Lake in Palau — a world-famous snorkeling destination and frequent subject for underwater photographers.

• Pre-crisis population: approximately 8 million jellyfish
• Post-collapse population (2016): fewer than 300,000
• Cause: El Niño-driven drought reduced freshwater input and concentrated salt in the lake, combined with elevated temperatures affecting jellyfish reproduction and survival

Jellyfish Lake had been famous since at least the 1980s as an experience where snorkelers could swim through millions of golden jellyfish. The collapse represented the loss of one of the most iconic underwater photography subjects in the Pacific. (^[2])

Great Barrier Reef Mass Bleaching

The Great Barrier Reef experienced back-to-back mass bleaching events unprecedented in recorded history:

• 2016: Survey data showed 67% of the northern Great Barrier Reef bleached. This was described as catastrophic by reef scientists. (^[3])
• 2017: A second consecutive mass bleaching event — two-thirds of the reef bleached in back-to-back years, a pattern never previously observed. Scientists warned this left insufficient recovery time between events.

Documentation: Chasing Coral (2017)

The crisis spurred major documentary filmmaking. Chasing Coral (dir. Jeff Orlowski, Exposure Labs) premiered on Netflix in July 2017, following the Chasing Ice team’s effort to document coral bleaching with time-lapse photography underwater.

The film used specially designed underwater camera rigs to capture bleaching events in real time — a significant technical and logistical achievement. It brought the crisis to a global audience previously unfamiliar with what coral bleaching looked like.

^[4]

Significance to Underwater Photography

The 2015–2017 bleaching crisis affected the underwater photography community at multiple levels:

1. Loss of subjects: Bleached and dead coral represented the disappearance of the colorful, biodiverse reefs that many photographers had built their careers documenting.
2. Documentation imperative: Many photographers felt a moral obligation to document the crisis while healthy reefs still existed — and to document the bleaching itself as historical record.
3. Destination disruption: Dive trips to affected areas found dramatically altered environments. Some expeditions to famous reef sites encountered widespread white coral instead of the expected biodiversity.
4. Conservation advocacy: Photographers increasingly used their images as conservation tools, contributing to campaigns to reduce carbon emissions and protect remaining reefs.

Related pages

• Exposure Labs — Produced Chasing Coral
• Eric Cheng — Environmental advocate; Palau (Jellyfish Lake) a significant early photography location

References

• ^[5] — editorial
• ^[6] — editorial
• ^[7] — editorial
• ^[8] — editorial