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Article: Bacteria cause plague in coral reef.
- Article from:
- Science News
- Article date:
- April 11, 1998
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1998 Science Service, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Just in time for the underwater version of flu season, researchers have identified the bacterium responsible for an unusually virulent coral disease.
Plague type II first appeared on the Florida Reef Tract in June 1995 and had spread along 200 kilometers of the Florida Keys by October. It advanced through healthy tissue at rates of up to 2 centimeters in 24 hours, killing corals in a few days. Plague type I, which appeared in the 1970s, spread only a few millimeters a day and took 3 to 4 months to kill.
Type II flared up again in 1996, and reef biologists fear that this summer will bring a new wave of the disease.
Identifying the bacterium ...