Polyps host zooxanthellae algae. Heat stress drives expulsion (bleaching); prolonged stress kills. Recovery is possible at cool temperatures. Temperature varies spatially.
Hover reef to warm a patch · click to heat-spike
Environment
28.0 °C
0.8
Biology
0.05
0.03
0.04
Populations
Healthy
0%
Stressed
0%
Bleached
0%
Dead
0%
Healthy (symbiont)StressedBleachedDead skeleton
Reef Biomass
Model: Each cell is a polyp with a thermal stress integrator. Symbionts (algae) thrive in a narrow band near 27–29 °C. Above ~30 °C stress accumulates and polyps expel algae, turning bleached. Cool water reverses stress; prolonged heat causes mortality. Surviving polyps can spawn larvae onto adjacent empty skeletons.