The U.S. government pared back the number of reef-building coral species it was considering to label as threatened from 66 to 20 this week, prompting criticism from conservationists.
Environmentalists urged the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on Thursday to extend the protection to all threatened marine species.
NOAA was considering 66 coral species when it embarked on its study two years ago. On Wednesday it announced its decision, adding the 20 species to two - staghorn and elkhorn - that were listed as threatened in 2006.
Of the new species, five are found in the Caribbean, including pillar coral and rough cactus coral, and 15 in the Indo-Pacific.
A U.N.-backed study warned earlier this year that most reefs in the Caribbean could vanish in the next two decades, hit by the loss of fish and sea urchins that eat coral-smothering algae.
NOAA said it considered wide-ranging public comments as part of the rulemaking process.
Coral is a stationary animal that slowly grows on sea floors over tens and even hundreds of years. Coral reefs are nurseries for many types of fish, and they also they help protect coasts from storms and tsunamis, as well as attracting tourists.
NOAA was petitioned in 2009 by the Center for Biological Diversity to list 83 of what it said were the most vulnerable coral species found in U.S. waters as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act.
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