Ghostly Coral
Using their underwater robot camera, which is adorably called SuBastian, scientists captured footage of this coral just north of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument, part of the Phoenix Archipelago that’s protected by Fish and Wildlife Service. It’s possibly a never-before-discovered species of gold coral.
These types of coral are already extremely rare. The image captured by the researchers shows not a gold-hued coral, but a ghostly white one. The scientists say the ghostly look comes from the coral’s sclerites—or hardened exoskeleton—getting embedded in its thick tissue.
The scientists didn’t just look at coral on their expedition. In fact, one of their biggest accomplishments was completing the first-ever comprehensive survey of coral and sponge predation. On the research vessel, the team conducted a series of experiments on coral and sponges to see how they react to more than 15 different microbial stimuli. The researchers said the new findings will help them learn more about how corals respond to grazing scars and wounding.
