HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Coral aquaculture, also known as coral farming or coral gardening, is the cultivation of
coral Corals are marine invertebrates within the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. Coral species include the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and sec ...
s for commercial purposes or
coral reef A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem characterized by reef-building corals. Reefs are formed of colonies of coral polyps held together by calcium carbonate. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, whose polyps cluster in groups. Co ...
restoration.
Aquaculture Aquaculture (less commonly spelled aquiculture), also known as aquafarming, is the controlled cultivation ("farming") of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, mollusks, algae and other organisms of value such as aquatic plants (e.g. lot ...
is showing promise as a tool for restoring coral reefs, which are dying off around the world.Horoszowski-Fridman, YB, Izhaki, I & Rinkevich, B (2011
"Engineering of coral reef larval supply through transplantation of nursery-farmed gravid colonies"
''Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology'', 399(2): 162–166.
Pomeroy, RS, Parks, JE and Balboa, CM (2006
"Farming the reef: is aquaculture a solution for reducing fishing pressure on coral reefs?"
''Marine Policy,'' 30(2): 111–130.
Rinkevich, B (2008
"Management of coral reefs: We have gone wrong when neglecting active reef restoration"
''Marine pollution bulletin,'' 56(11): 1821–1824.
The process protects young corals while they are most at risk of dying. Small corals are propagated in nurseries and then replanted on the reef.Ferse, SCA 2010
"Poor Performance of Corals Transplanted onto Substrates of Short Durability"
Restoration Ecology, vol. 18, no. 4, pp. 399–407.
Coral is also farmed by scientists for research, by businesses for the live and ornamental coral trade, and by private
reef aquarium A reef aquarium or reef tank is a marine aquarium that prominently displays live corals and other marine invertebrates as well as fish that play a role in maintaining the tropical coral reef environment. A reef aquarium requires appropriately ...
hobbyists A hobby is considered to be a regular activity that is done for enjoyment, typically during one's leisure time. Hobbies include collecting themed items and objects, engaging in creative and artistic pursuits, playing sports, or pursuing oth ...
. Coral reef farming involves extracting a part of a coral colony or free-floating
larva A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. The ...
e from a reef, and growing them in a nursery until outplanting would be successful. It is commonly referred to as the "gardening method" and has been compared to
silviculture Silviculture is the practice of controlling the growth, composition/structure, and quality of forests to meet values and needs, specifically timber production. The name comes from the Latin ('forest') and ('growing'). The study of forests and wo ...
as a management practice that mimics natural ecosystems.Levy, G, Shaish, L, Haim, A & Rinkevich, B (2010
"Mid-water rope nursery--Testing design and performance of a novel reef restoration instrument"
''Ecological Engineering,'' 36(4): 560–569.
Adult corals can be transplanted onto a reef, usually in a damaged area.Bellwood DR et al. (2004
Confronting the coral reef crisis
''Nature'', Review, 429(6994): 827–833
Coral is farmed for conservation reasons in the
Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
,
Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
,
Solomon Islands Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capita ...
,
Palau Palau,, officially the Republic of Palau and historically ''Belau'', ''Palaos'' or ''Pelew'', is an island country and microstate in the western Pacific. The nation has approximately 340 islands and connects the western chain of the Caro ...
,
Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...
,
Marshall Islands The Marshall Islands ( mh, Ṃajeḷ), officially the Republic of the Marshall Islands ( mh, Aolepān Aorōkin Ṃajeḷ),'' () is an independent island country and microstate near the Equator in the Pacific Ocean, slightly west of the Internati ...
, and
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
. Land-based coral farming occurs in
public aquarium A public aquarium (plural: ''public aquaria'' or ''public Water Zoo'') is the aquatic counterpart of a zoo, which houses living aquatic animal and plant specimens for public viewing. Most public aquariums feature tanks larger than those kept b ...
s in North America and Europe.Delbeek, JC (2001
Coral farming: past, present and future trends"
''Aquarium Sciences and Conservation'', 3(1): 171–81.


Benefits of healthy reefs

A healthy reef houses a large amount of
biodiversity Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...
with varying species of corals. It requires
herbivore A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example foliage or marine algae, for the main component of its diet. As a result of their plant diet, herbivorous animals typically have mouthpart ...
s including
parrotfish Parrotfishes are a group of about 90 fish species regarded as a Family (biology), family (Scaridae), or a subfamily (Scarinae) of the wrasses. With about 95 species, this group's largest species richness is in the Indo-Pacific. They are found ...
and
collector urchin ''Tripneustes gratilla'', the collector urchin, is a species of sea urchin. Collector urchins are found at depths of in the waters of the Indo-Pacific, Hawaii, the Red Sea, and The Bahamas. They can reach in size. Description Collector urch ...
s that graze on infesting
algae Algae (; singular alga ) is an informal term for a large and diverse group of photosynthetic eukaryotic organisms. It is a polyphyletic grouping that includes species from multiple distinct clades. Included organisms range from unicellular mic ...
. Most corals require oligotrophic waters, that is, water that is clear and nutrient poor. Corals derive nutrients from
zooxanthellae Zooxanthellae is a colloquial term for single-celled dinoflagellates that are able to live in symbiosis with diverse marine invertebrates including demosponges, corals, jellyfish, and nudibranchs. Most known zooxanthellae are in the genus ''Sy ...
symbionts Symbiosis (from Greek , , "living together", from , , "together", and , bíōsis, "living") is any type of a close and long-term biological interaction between two different biological organisms, be it mutualistic, commensalistic, or parasit ...
, as well as from
plankton Plankton are the diverse collection of organisms found in Hydrosphere, water (or atmosphere, air) that are unable to propel themselves against a Ocean current, current (or wind). The individual organisms constituting plankton are called plankt ...
and other free floating particles. Zooxanthellae require a mixture of white and blue light to thrive within the coral, depending on the coral type. Some corals, like the
orange cup coral Orange cup coral (''Tubastraea coccinea'') belongs to a group of corals known as large-polyp stony corals. This non-reef building coral extends beautiful translucent tentacles at night. ''Tubastraea coccinea'' is heterotrophic and does not conta ...
, do not require light, and rely on the plankton or free floating nutrients as sustenance. Coral reefs protect the coastline from erosion and storm damage. They are important
foundation species In ecology, the foundation species are species that have a strong role in structuring a community. A foundation species can occupy any trophic level in a food web (i.e., they can be primary producers, herbivores or predators). The term was coined ...
that increase
biodiversity Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...
in the area by providing nursery ground and habitat for nearly one third of saltwater fish species. These include ten percent of all fish captured for human consumption, even though reefs only cover less than one percent of the ocean's surface.


Reefs in decline

Reefs are affected by severe weather events, such as
cyclone In meteorology, a cyclone () is a large air mass that rotates around a strong center of low atmospheric pressure, counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere as viewed from above (opposite to an anti ...
s, temperature changes of 1–2 degrees of the average water temperature over a period of weeks, from predation by
crown of thorns starfish The crown-of-thorns starfish (frequently abbreviated to COTS), ''Acanthaster planci'', is a large starfish that preys upon hard, or stony, coral polyps (Scleractinia). The crown-of-thorns starfish receives its name from venomous thorn-like spine ...
, and from competition for habitat with other foundation species such as algae. Algae can take over coral habitats when the water contains excess nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus) or when fishing stocks are too low and herbivorous fish do not keep the algae at bay by eating it. Corals can minimally protect themselves from algae as well, by removing it with their
polyps A polyp in zoology is one of two forms found in the phylum Cnidaria, the other being the medusa. Polyps are roughly cylindrical in shape and elongated at the axis of the vase-shaped body. In solitary polyps, the aboral (opposite to oral) end is ...
. When corals are in suboptimal conditions they are less able to protect themselves from algal coverage, diseases, and other stressors. This diversion of energy from growth puts the coral's life at risk.
Coral bleaching Coral bleaching is the process when corals become white due to various stressors, such as changes in temperature, light, or nutrients. Bleaching occurs when coral polyps expel the zooxanthellae (dinoflagellates that are commonly referred to as alg ...
is the result of the loss of vital zooxanthellae; any of the stressors can cause bleaching. The corals expel their
symbionts Symbiosis (from Greek , , "living together", from , , "together", and , bíōsis, "living") is any type of a close and long-term biological interaction between two different biological organisms, be it mutualistic, commensalistic, or parasit ...
because they are trying to get rid of any foreign bodies that might be causing them stress. Corals can survive up to a week without the zooxanthellae, but it is difficult. Corals can recover from bleaching and uptake vital zooxanthellae again but this requires a change in environment and the lessening of stressors.   Natural stressors to the coral reef are further aggravated by the human impact on coral reefs. Anthropogenic stressors such as runoff, coastal development,
dynamite fishing Blast fishing, fish bombing, dynamite fishing or grenade fishing is a destructive fishing practice using explosives to stun or kill schools of fish for easy collection. This often illegal practice is extremely destructive to the surrounding ec ...
,
cyanide fishing In respect of fishing techniques, cyanide fishing is a specific method of collecting live fish, mainly for use in aquariums, which involves spraying a sodium cyanide mixture into the desired fish's habitat in order to incapacitate the fish. This ...
,
overexploitation Overexploitation, also called overharvesting, refers to harvesting a renewable resource to the point of diminishing returns. Continued overexploitation can lead to the destruction of the resource, as it will be unable to replenish. The term app ...
of resources and
marine pollution Marine pollution occurs when substances used or spread by humans, such as industrial waste, industrial, agricultural pollution, agricultural and municipal solid waste, residential waste, particle (ecology), particles, noise, excess carbon dioxid ...
, put 58% percent of the world's reefs under threat as of 2009. An example is the exploitation of
mushroom coral The Fungiidae () are a family of Cnidaria, commonly known as mushroom corals or plate corals. The family contains thirteen extant genera. They range from solitary corals to colonial species. Some genera such as ''Cycloseris'' and ''Fungia'' are ...
in Indonesia which is harvested for supply of the jewelry and curio trades. Harvesting of living reef organisms, including coral, is increasing around the world. Coral is often overharvested to supply growing demand. Overharvesting weakens the ability of reefs to replenish after other harmful events.


Reef restoration

Coral propagation can improve coral cover,
biodiversity Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...
, and structural heterogeneity of a degraded reef. Success has been achieved with
fire coral Fire corals (''Millepora'') are a genus of colonial marine organisms that exhibit physical characteristics similar to that of coral. The name coral is somewhat misleading, as fire corals are not true corals but are instead more closely related ...
, ''
Pocillopora verrucosa ''Pocillopora verrucosa'', commonly known as cauliflower coral, rasp coral, or knob-horned coral, is a species of stony coral in the family Pocilloporidae. It is native to tropical and subtropical parts of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Descript ...
'', and ''
Acropora hemprichii ''Acropora hemprichii'' is a species of acroporid coral that was first described by Christian Gottfried Ehrenberg in 1834. It lives in reefs at depths of for between 13 and 24 years. The species is listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, an ...
''.Gateno, D, Barki, Y & Rinkevich, B (2000
"Aquarium maintenance of reef octocorals raised from field collected larvae"
''Aquarium Sciences and Conservation'', 2(4): 227–236.
A restored reef hosts organisms associated with the reef, such as
reef fish Coral reef fish are fish which live amongst or in close relation to coral reefs. Coral reefs form complex ecosystems with tremendous biodiversity. Among the myriad inhabitants, the fish stand out as colourful and interesting to watch. Hundreds ...
es. Reefs are delicate and complex
ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) consists of all the organisms and the physical environment with which they interact. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Energy enters the syste ...
s. It is difficult to replicate what a damaged reef looked like before the damage occurred. Most coral farms that are utilized for mitigation of damage are only able to propagate the fast growing corals that are easy to grow. Slow growing corals are expensive to propagate and are not a fast growing foundation species which is needed when damage occurs. Most coral reefs will take decades to return to their previous state. Nursery-grown coral promote
reef resilience The resilience of coral reefs is the biological ability of coral reefs to recover from natural and anthropogenic disturbances such as storms and bleaching episodes.
by making contributions to the larval pool. This could have a positive effect on new growth if transplanting of the new coral is made just before a larval release season. Oceanographer Baruch Rinkevich coined the term ''active restoration'' to describe coral reef farming, in contrast with what he described as ''passive restoration'' efforts focused on mitigation of stressors by means such as the designation of
marine protected area Marine protected areas (MPA) are protected areas of seas, oceans, estuaries or in the US, the Great Lakes. These marine areas can come in many forms ranging from wildlife refuges to research facilities. MPAs restrict human activity for a conserv ...
s (MPAs). Coral reefs are often placed in MPAs in the hope that reducing human activity will allow the coral to recover.


Aquarium trade

Many people enjoy the creating their own coral display in a home aquarium. In response to this, businesses farm coral to supply them. Some companies farm in sunlit greenhouses instead of artificially lighted aquariums. The 1999 Hawaii Marine Ornamentals Conference concluded with a recommendation to "give highest priority to projects involving the advancement of marine ornamental aquaculture and reef preservation." Conferees pressed the importance of encouraging hobbyists to supply only from coral reef farms to help deter over-harvesting. Conferees recommended initiatives to encourage consumer understanding that cultured ornamentals are a more sustainable and 'higher value' alternative to wild-caught live reef organisms.


Methods


For conservation

The stages to farming for reef restoration are: collecting polyps or larvae; growing the specimens in tanks; further growth in sea nurseries and re-transplantation onto the reef.


Collection

Coral can reproduce asexually by
budding Budding or blastogenesis is a type of asexual reproduction in which a new organism develops from an outgrowth or bud due to cell division at one particular site. For example, the small bulb-like projection coming out from the yeast cell is know ...
or sexually by
spawning Spawn is the eggs and sperm released or deposited into water by aquatic animals. As a verb, ''to spawn'' refers to the process of releasing the eggs and sperm, and the act of both sexes is called spawning. Most aquatic animals, except for aquati ...
. Collecting coral polyps from existing reef colonies or fragments can be done any time. Branches, fragments, or tips of branches are common targets. This is the most widely practiced method. Collecting coral spawn is generally an annual activity, conducted immediately following a spawning event. Coral colonies on a reef usually spawn together in a synchronized event on a specific day. This allows for hundreds of thousands of coral embryos to be collected at one time. This method is known as ''spat stocking''. At the Great Barrier Reef Aquarium in Townsville, Australia, large colonies of ''
Acropora formosa ''Acropora muricata'', commonly called staghorn coral, is a species of acroporid coral found in the Gulf of Aden, the Red Sea, Indian Ocean, Persian Gulf, Australia, central Indo-Pacific, Japan, Southeast Asia, the East China Sea and the ocean ...
'' have collection devices placed above them during spawning. Small mature colonies are transplanted from the reef into a tank for spawning. They can then be reattached to the reef. Using this method, the mother colonies are unaffected. This method has also been proved effective on Red Sea soft coral species, ''
Alcyonaria Octocorallia (also known as Alcyonaria) is a class of Anthozoa comprising around 3,000 species of water-based organisms formed of colonial polyps with 8-fold symmetry. It includes the blue coral, soft corals, sea pens, and gorgonians (sea fans ...
ns'': ''
Clavularia Clavularia is a genus of corals in the family Clavulariidae. They are often referred by the common names star polyps or clove polyps. Species There are 69 accepted species in this genus: * '' Clavularia alba'' (Grieg, 1888) * '' Clavularia arc ...
hamra'', ''
Nephthea ''Litophyton'' is a genus of soft corals in the family Nephtheidae. Species The World Register of Marine Species includes the following species in the genus: *''Litophyton acuticonicum'' (Verseveldt, 1974) *'' Litophyton amentaceum'' (Studer, ...
sp''. and '' Litophyton arboreum''.


Tank cultivation

Linden describes an apparatus made of
Petri dish A Petri dish (alternatively known as a Petri plate or cell-culture dish) is a shallow transparent lidded dish that biologists use to hold growth medium in which cells can be cultured,R. C. Dubey (2014): ''A Textbook Of Biotechnology For Class- ...
es lined with preconditioned Mailer's paper disks on which the
planula A planula is the free-swimming, flattened, ciliated, bilaterally symmetric larval form of various cnidarian species and also in some species of Ctenophores. Some groups of Nemerteans also produce larvae that are very similar to the planula, which ...
of ''
Stylophora pistillata ''Stylophora pistillata'', commonly known as hood coral or smooth cauliflower coral, is a species of stony coral in the family Pocilloporidae. It is native to the Indo-Pacific region and is commonly used in scientific investigations. Description ...
'' are grown. One-month-old survivors were transferred onto plastic pins in a mid-water coral nursery, where the trays were covered with fitted plastic nets to prevent predation and detachment. After four months, more than 89% of the corals had survived.


Ocean cultivation

Next the corals are transported into floating nurseries in the sea. The corals float in the water column, attached on a submerged structure. Some authors recommend 6 metres depth to ensure the corals get the right amount of sunlight. They are affixed to an artificial substrate. This is usually made from string, wire, mesh,
monofilament A monofilament may refer to: * Monofilament fishing line, a type of thread * A monofilament as used in a monofilament test in a neurological examination * Monomolecular wire Monomolecular wire is a type of wire consisting of a single strand of s ...
line or
epoxy Epoxy is the family of basic components or cured end products of epoxy resins. Epoxy resins, also known as polyepoxides, are a class of reactive prepolymers and polymers which contain epoxide groups. The epoxide functional group is also coll ...
. The colonies remain there from 8 to 24 months to reach a size for transplantation back to the reef.


Return to the reef

When the corals are big enough to be transplanted into the reef, the transplantation stage involves securing to the corals by plastic pegs or masonry anchors or with
epoxy Epoxy is the family of basic components or cured end products of epoxy resins. Epoxy resins, also known as polyepoxides, are a class of reactive prepolymers and polymers which contain epoxide groups. The epoxide functional group is also coll ...
.


For commercial or exhibition supply

For commercial markets, the process is the same except that the ocean cultivation is extended until the colonies reach marketable size (about fist-sized) and the final step is replaced by extraction and packaging for sale.


Economy

Coral aquaculture offers alternative livelihoods to people living near the reefs. This is especially important for communities where fishing or harvesting marine organisms have become unsustainable, such as in Indonesia. It is possible to use coral resources in a way that is environmentally friendly. Many coral reefs are in impoverished locations. Coral reef aquaculture requires only basic, cheap materials, making it possible for communities with limited resources. Some new methods, such as seeding of concrete
tetrapods Tetrapods (; ) are four-limbed vertebrate animals constituting the superclass Tetrapoda (). It includes extant and extinct amphibians, sauropsids (reptiles, including dinosaurs and therefore birds) and synapsids (pelycosaurs, extinct therapsids ...
containing coral larvae, make it possible to reduce costs and outplanting time compared to previous approaches.


History

One of the first serious attempts at propagating coral ''
ex situ Svalbard GLOBAL SEED BANK, an ''ex situ'' conservation. ''Ex situ'' conservation literally means, "off-site conservation". It is the process of protecting an endangered species, variety or breed, of plant or animal outside its natural habitat; ...
'' occurred at Nouméa Aquarium in 1956. At the time it was common for aquarium hobbyists in Germany to create home "mini-reefs". Commercial coral propagation began in America in the 1960s, and hobby industry took off in the early 1980s. The trend was attributed to hobby magazines. In 2009 the US government awarded $3.3 million for a project to cultivate 5,000 colonies of ''
Acropora ''Acropora'' is a genus of small polyp stony coral in the phylum Cnidaria. Some of its species are known as table coral, elkhorn coral, and staghorn coral. Over 149 species are described. ''Acropora'' species are some of the major reef corals r ...
''. Researchers claimed that transplanting 35 colonies per year would restore coral populations to 1970s levels in 10 years.


Research and development

Coral aquaculture provides insights into coral life histories. Petersen showed that early sexual recruits grow larger when fed the
nauplii Nauplius, Nauplia or Nauplios , may refer to : Greece-related * Nauplius (mythology), in Greek mythology, the son of Poseidon and Amymone, the father of Palamedes, and also the name of an Argonaut * Nauplia Nafplio ( ell, Ναύπλιο) is a ...
of
brine shrimp ''Artemia'' is a genus of aquatic crustaceans also known as brine shrimp. It is the only genus in the family Artemiidae. The first historical record of the existence of ''Artemia'' dates back to the first half of the 10th century AD from Urmia La ...
. This discovery could shorten the fragile post settlement time in the hatchery. The
Mote Marine Laboratory Mote Marine Laboratory is an independent, nonprofit, marine research organization based on City Island in Sarasota, Florida, with additional campuses in eastern Sarasota County, Boca Grande, Florida, and the Florida Keys. Founded in 1955 by Eug ...
keeps many broodstock colonies at its Tropical Research Laboratory. The laboratory website reports that its colonies are grown from fragments rescued from boat groundings and environmental disturbances. The corals in the broodstock reserve provide fragments for restoration research. Studies are done to determine optimal size, shape and season for restoration.Coral aquacultural research
''Mote Marine Laboratory''. Retrieved 9 September 2011.


Market

Indonesia and the Philippines supply ~85% of coral reef products. Indonesia requires 10% of coral production to be transplanted into the ocean. As of 2012, a majority of coral imports to the US were wild-caught, although an increasing proportion were cultured. From 1990 to 2010, imports increased by some 8% annually. Imports declined thereafter the wake of the
Great Recession The Great Recession was a period of marked general decline, i.e. a recession, observed in national economies globally that occurred from late 2007 into 2009. The scale and timing of the recession varied from country to country (see map). At ...
and from increasing domestic production. Commercial trade in stony and reef-building corals is regulated by the
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species CITES (shorter name for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, also known as the Washington Convention) is a multilateral treaty to protect endangered plants and animals from the threats of interna ...
(CITES). In Indonesia, most production is located around airports to speed the shipping process.


See also

*
Artificial reef An artificial reef is a human-created underwater structure, typically built to promote marine life in areas with a generally featureless bottom, to control erosion, block ship passage, block the use of trawling nets, or improve surfing. Many re ...
*
Biorock Biorock (also seacrete) is a cement-like engineering material formed when a small electric current is passed between underwater metal electrodes placed in seawater causing dissolved minerals to accrete onto the cathode to form a thick layer of l ...
*
Coral reef protection Coral reef protection is the process of modifying human activities to avoid damage to healthy coral reefs and to help damaged reefs recover. The key strategies used in reef protection include defining measurable goals and introducing active manag ...
*
The Reef Ball Foundation Reef Ball Foundation, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that functions as an international environmental non-governmental organization. The foundation uses reef ball artificial reef technology, combined with coral propagation, transpla ...
* Wave of Change


References


External links

* {{hydroculture Coral reefs
Coral Corals are marine invertebrates within the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. Coral species include the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and sec ...