WORLDTECHBleached corals recover in seven weeks after contact with healthy clones
Scientists report that bleached corals on the brink of death can fully recover through brief contact with healthy clones. According to a study published in Science Advances, the corals returned to full health within seven weeks in a laboratory setting, the fastest recovery documented so far.
Recovery observed in the laboratory
The study, published in Science Advances, describes what its authors call the first observation of bleached corals that were close to death returning to full health. The recovery came through brief contact with healthy clones of the same corals.
The corals had turned ghostly white, the bleached state that marks severe stress. In the laboratory they regained full health within seven weeks, which the study describes as the fastest documented recovery to date.
Source of the report
The findings are reported by Phys.org, which covered the study. The account rests on that single report and the published study it describes.
Open questions
- Will the same recovery occur on natural reefs outside the laboratory?
- How well does the method work across different coral species?