A major breakthrough for scientists to save coral reefs

Scientists in Florida have made a major breakthrough in the quest to save coral in the Caribbean. For the first time, marine biologists have successfully reproduced the endangered Elkhorn coral using aquarium techniques.

Coral reefs in the Caribbean have disappeared from large areas, a trend that scientists now want to counter. Above all, the moose horn coral has disappeared and is now found in a few places in the wild. At the same time, coral species are an important building block for coral reefs to thrive and have hitherto been difficult to grow in aquariums.

Until now. That is why researchers are delighted when it is now possible to grow corals.

“When it finally happened, it was a total relief,” he says. Keri O’Neillthe scientist who oversees the laboratory in Tampa, Florida.

“This is an important step in preventing the extinction of Elkhorn coral in Florida.”

300 left moose horn coral

This species is the 14th cultured at the Apollo Beach Lab, but it is also considered the most important because there are an estimated 300 corals remaining in the Florida Keys’ coral system, so farming can cause the species to multiply rapidly again.

Even in the lab, the researchers had to follow the natural pattern of how corals reproduce and reproduce, which only occurs once a year. Now that it has worked, researchers see coral reefs increasingly resistant to external stress.

“For example, corals selected for restoration may be more resistant to warmer ocean temperatures and bleaching, exhibit structural properties that can withstand more intense wave energy, and properties that can make them more resistant to disease or other environmental stresses,” he says. Thomas FraserDirector of Marine Sciences at the University of South Florida.

More resilient than corals

The ultimate goal is a breeding program where scientists can select for genetic diversity and breed more resilient corals that can withstand threats such as pollution, ocean warming and disease.

However, according to researcher Keri O’Neill, that’s premature.

“We buy time for reefs. We buy time for reefs.”

Read also: Recovery in the Great Barrier Reef [Dagens PS]