Carlot J. auteur aut IRD Vousdoukas M. auteur aut IRD Rovere A. auteur aut IRD Karambas T. auteur aut IRD Lenihan H. S. auteur aut IRD Kayal Mohsen auteur aut IRD Adjeroud Mehdi auteur aut IRD Perez-Rosales G. auteur aut IRD Hedouin L. auteur aut IRD Parravicini V. auteur aut IRD text journalArticle eng text/pdf reformatted digital access Coral reefs offer natural coastal protection by attenuating incoming waves. Here we combine unique coral disturbance-recovery observations with hydrodynamic models to quantify how structural complexity dissipates incoming wave energy. We find that if the structural complexity of healthy coral reefs conditions is halved, extreme wave run-up heights that occur once in a 100-years will become 50 times more frequent, threatening reef-backed coastal communities with increased waves, erosion, and flooding. specialized POLYNESIE FRANCAISE MOOREA 021 064 036 020 13 1 [8 ] 2023 2045-2322 https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010088109 10.1038/s41598-023-28945-x 2045-2322 [F B010088109] https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010088109 https://horizon.documentation.ird.fr/exl-doc/pleins_textes/2023-07/010088109.pdf IRD - Base Horizon / Pleins textes 2023-07-06 2025-02-24 fdi:010088109 fre