Buhl‑Mortensen, L.Houssa, R.Mahu, E.2024-01-252024-01-252023https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-023-04344-8http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh:8080/handle/123456789/41135Research ArticleThe health status of cold-water coral reefs on the West African coast was investigated with the main objective of obtain ing knowledge of the adaptive capacity of Lophelia pertusa to environmental stressors. Three coral sites were studied, in Northern Morocco, in the Morocco/Mauritania region (both in 2020) and, in the Ghana and Ivory coast region (visited in 2012, 2017, and 2019). Area cover of live colonies, explored through underwater videos, was used as an indicator of reef health and compared with the environmental variables: reef position, depth, water mass, temperature, dissolved oxygen con centration (DO), carbonate chemistry (pH, aragonite saturation (ΩAr), macronutrients and particles (visual). For a broader picture of the adaptations presented by Lophelia our results were compared with reefs in contrasting environments. Of Ghana and Mauritania healthy reefs (i.e., having areas with more than 20 % cover of live colonies) were found to reside at DO concentrations between 1.1 and 1.6 ml L−1, in corrosive waters (pH 7.7 and ΩAr 1.0) with high nutrient concentrations. By contrast, the reefs of the North of Morocco, sitting in well-oxygenated waters with oversaturated ΩAr, had no or few live colonies. Our fndings together with data from other studies show that Lophelia has a wide tolerance to hypoxia and acidifcation, and that in relation to climate change increased temperature and silting could pose more serious threats. These fndings highlight the importance of continued studies of Lophelia reefs in contrasting environmental conditions to better understand their adaptation potential to climate change-related stressorsenCold-water coralLopheliaWest AfricaArticle