Golden Coral Triangle – A Food Supply Chain Reaction
Flying back from a vacation in Boracay, I was surprised to read about what may probably be a little known fact … that the oceanic area ranging from Singapore to Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Timor Leste and the Solomon Islands covering 23 Million square Kilometers represents the richest and one of most important Coral Reef regions of the world. This eco system is a critical breeding ground and nursery for about 75% of the world corals with commensurate bio diversity of thousands of species per square Kilometer according to the WWF. It also creates livelihoods for over 100 Million people living in the area.
75 percent of all known coral species did I just say?? Part of me is still coming to grips with it. It also makes up more than half of the world’s reefs … again yes, the whole wide world. Within this sustenance rich eco systems lives 40 percent of the world’s coral reef fish species, and six of the world’s seven species of marine turtle, 51 of the world’s 70 mangrove species and 23 of the 50 sea grass species.
