( ults in a more fragile and less stable ...)Global warming may have damaged coral reefs forever

Smaller fish have reduced in number more quickly than larger species but their decreased availability has started to have a more lasting effect on the food chain, and this effect is likely to be amplified as time goes on. Moreover, the observed decrease in herbivorous fish is a key concern as they control algal spread.

Researchers speculate that the reefs' inability to reseed is down to their relative isolation. A lack of nearby reefs to provide larvae which could settle and grow into new coral structures and the absence of favourable sea currents to transport the larvae could be largely to blame.

Yet while a bleak picture is painted in the inner islands of the Seychelles, the survey area, from a diving perspective the outer carbonate islands still offer healthy coral reefs. Early results from diver tourist surveys in the inner islands suggest that diver satisfaction is high with granite reefs, wrecks and whale sharks.

Lead researcher Nick Graham, of Newcastle University's School of Marine Science and Technology, said: "We have shown there has been very little recovery in the reef system of the inner Seychelles islands for seven years after the 1998 coral bleaching event.

"Reefs can sometimes recover after disturbances, but we have shown that after severe bleaching events, collapse in the physical structure of the reef results in profound impacts on other organisms in the ecosystem and greatly impedes the likelihood of recovery.

"Unfortunately it may be too late to save many of these reefs but this research shows the importance of countries tackling greenhouse gas emissions and trying to reduce global warming and its effect on some of the world's finest and most diverse wildlife."