SCTLD Confirmed on Little Cayman

Marine researchers were recently in Little Cayman conducting annual long-term coral reef assessment and noticed coral lesions resembling SCTLD at Black Hole and Windsock Reef dive sites.
These matched reports received from two local resorts on island. A team of DoE scientists returned to Little Cayman on the 20th of August confirming the presence of the lethal coral disease and conducted surveys to establish the extent of the infected area.
SCTLD is an aggressive disease in which coral tissue dies within days, weeks or months, depending on species, exposing the bare calcium carbonate skeleton. Up until recently there have been no confirmed reports of SCTLD in the Sister Islands. SCTLD data from Grand Caymans has shown that the disease travels approximately at a rate of one mile per month. The survey in Little Cayman therefore suggests the infection likely became established in July 2025.
SCTLD first arrived in Grand Cayman in 2020 and relentless effort to stop the spread with antibiotic paste, and other methods developed by researchers were employed. Despite this, SCTLD devastated Grand Cayman reefs within 18 months, circumnavigating the entire island. Once SCTLD lesions are visible, corals are already infected so the various methods developed to treat the disease are ultimately ineffective at stopping the spread of the disease. This conclusion is supported by laboratory results from other coral researchers around the region dealing with the devastating effects of SCTLD.
Response efforts in Little Cayman therefore remain focused on preventing the spread to Cayman Brac by isolating SCUBA gear and boat bilge water to individual islands as much as possible.
These measures successfully delayed the transmission of SCTLD from Grand to Little Cayman for the last several years and are still recommended for travel to Little Cayman so as not to add any additional infection sites to the reefs there. Unfortunately data collected in Grand Cayman has proven that once established, the spread of SCTLD is essentially unstoppable. However, with continued vigilance in keeping dive gear and bilge water island specific, perhaps we can delay the spread of SCTLD to Cayman Brac for a few more years.
Disinfect to Protect
Please follow the disinfecting guidelines for divers and boaters available at www.doe.ky/sctld-disinfection
Scientists and senior management at the DoE will continue to monitor the spread of SCTLD in Little Cayman and are evaluating various new and old methods to mitigate and manage the disease.
Additionally, the DoE coral team continues to explore coral reef restoration by propagating surviving corals in the Coral Spawning Lab (donated by the Foster Group) for the most affected coral species. These more resilient corals, spawned and reared in their coral lab, will eventually be outplanted on the most severely affected reefs, helping to bolster reef recovery and coral reef resilience.