For a long time, it has been assumed that herbivores are good for coral reefs and corallivores are bad. Herbivores like surgeonfish and rabbitfish graze the algae which would otherwise overgrow, smother and outcompete corals, and a reef without herbivores…
Study finds Table Corals are fast to grow but first to go
Scientists at the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) have found that some fast-growing coral species on the Great Barrier Reef slow down their growth rates when they are exposed to warmer water. The study, published in the Proceedings of…
Gloomy Octopus throw things at each other, study finds
Octopuses deserve way more intellectual respect than we give them credit for, and films like My Octopus Teacher and Octopus: Making Contact, has only made us love them more. We’ve seen Octopuses open screw-top jars, dream, and even punch fish,…
Hawaiian corals choose algae symbionts to suit depth and temperature
A study published in Royal Society Open Science has found that Montipora capitata populates with algal symbionts based on environmental factors. Scientists from the Hawai‘i Institute of Marine Biology and the Chaminade University of Honolulu already knew that the reef-building…
