Coral Reef

I regularly snorkled the coral reefs in Fiji when I was a teenager. (We went regularly because my father worked there.) The inner reefs were teeming with life: bright coloured coral and fish of all kinds. I could easily find live clams and beautiful white & pink shellfish. To my shame, I used to collect them, killing many reef animals in the process. Ten years later I noticed that the reef was dying. Today, the inner reef is mostly dead, the coral is covered in a brown mossy substance and the fish are sparse. You need to go to the outer reef - or to islands with a lower human population - to see a healthy coral habitat.