This report summarises the status (percentage hard coral cover) of reefs in the Northern, Central and Southern Great Barrier Reef (GBR) during the 2025-26 field season. Data were collected during manta tow surveys on 121 reefs by expert scientists of the Long-Term Monitoring Program (LTMP) between August 2025 and June 2026 (reported as ‘2026’).
- In 2026, hard coral cover across all three regions of the GBR increased slightly or remained similar to levels recorded in 2025, signalling the start of recovery from the impacts of the 2024 mass bleaching event.
- In 2026, 16% of surveyed reefs underwent a decline in percentage coral cover, 56% showed no net change, and 28% had an increase.
- Of the 121 reefs surveyed, only three reefs had hard coral cover <10%. Most reefs (64) had coral cover between 10% and 30%, 42 reefs had cover between 30% and 50%, 12 reefs had coral cover between 50% and 75%, and there were no reefs with cover >75%.
Source: Australian Institute of Marine Science | Australia’s tropical marine research agency
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