Observations of coral bleaching in the Caribbean are widespread. Of the over 500 observations in recent decades, 24 were during the 1980s, over 350 during the 1990s, and over 100 since 2000. The increase in recorded incidents reflects both rising sea surface temperatures and greater awareness and communication of coral bleaching events.

Source: Reefbase, "Coral Bleaching Dataset," downloaded from http://www.reefbase.org on 10 August 2004.