Can Lab-Grown Coral Restore Reefs Damaged By Climate Change? (cbsnews.com)
- Reference: 0179213118
- News link: https://news.slashdot.org/story/25/09/13/2025209/can-lab-grown-coral-restore-reefs-damaged-by-climate-change
- Source link: https://www.cbsnews.com/sanfrancisco/news/bay-area-scientists-helping-restore-coral-reefs-damaged-by-climate-change/
SFGate adds that [2]more than 50% of the world's coral reefs have been lost , mostly over the past 10 years, according to coral reef scientist Rebecca Albright at the California Academy of Sciences. "If changes aren't made soon, 90% to 99% of the coral reefs that are remaining could be deteriorated by 2050, Albright said..."
But CBS News notes that Albright's lab is the first in America to successfully spawn coral to regenerate the reefs:
> The lab is mastering the art and science of creating baby corals, and the scientists have brought their expertise into the wild. The location: the second-largest reef in the world, known as the [3]Mesoamerican Reef , stretching some 700 miles along the coasts of Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, and Honduras... Armed with test tubes, the scientists quickly dove into the water and collected the tiny packets of gametes. Back on land, the eggs were fertilized, incubated, and then brought back into the wild. "Then we planted over 3,000 baby corals back to the reef," explained Albright. The baby corals are now two months old. The Roatan staff will dive in a few months to see how many survived.
Scientists are worried because bleaching events "are becoming more common," notes SFGate, "happening more frequently and affecting more parts of the world... The most current event was confirmed [4]on April 15, 2024 , and is still ongoing, impacting approximately 84% of the world's coral reefs as of August 31.
"It has been documented in at least 83 countries and territories."
[1] https://www.cbsnews.com/sanfrancisco/news/bay-area-scientists-helping-restore-coral-reefs-damaged-by-climate-change/
[2] https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/sf-scientists-fight-climate-doom-breakthrough-21041729.php
[3] https://www.worldwildlife.org/places/mesoamerican-reef
[4] https://coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite/research/coral_bleaching_report.php
The article is missing the most newsworthy aspect (Score:4, Informative)
Past coral restoration efforts were usually done by taking small pieces from living, adult, coral polyp colonies, then "planting" those small pieces in favorable spots were they would continue to grow. But adult coral polyps are pretty much settled on one type of algae they host as symbionts, and that choice fixes them to a very narrow temperature range they can thrive in. Coral zygots, however, are flexible to host different kinds of algae, making that "choice" only when they settle. And this can dramatically improve their ability to adapt to changed temperatures.
This is why "lab-grown" corals are an interesting new attempt for restoration.
Re: (Score:1)
The bleaching of a coral reef is cyclic, it's not a permanent destruction. This link is a few years old but it shows that some subject matter experts are seeing recovery from past bleaching events.
[1]https://www.aims.gov.au/inform... [aims.gov.au]
While global warming could be an issue the larger coral reefs took thousands, perhaps millions, of years to form as we see them today. It would appear they are quite durable and survived very wide swings in changes to their local climate. I'm a bit concerned on having people int
[1] https://www.aims.gov.au/information-centre/news-and-stories/great-barrier-reef-not-fine-and-nor-it-dying-truth-inbetween
Re: (Score:2)
It's a cunning business plan. If it goes through and in a while it's found that the reefs are actually flourishing - it will be thanks to the clever American scientists! If not, it will be blamed on global warming.
Incidentally, do those people have any legal right to interfere with coral reefs along "...the coasts of Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, and Honduras..."?
Last I heard, the Great Barrier Reef was thriving. Maybe that's why the focus is moving elsewhere.
Re: (Score:3)
Thanks for your valuable and well-documented contribution, and for your exemplary courtesy. Of course the opinion of a well-known celebrity such as yourself is quite decisive.
However, the following report shows that your opinions are wrong.
[1]https://www.aims.gov.au/sites/... [aims.gov.au]
[1] https://www.aims.gov.au/sites/default/files/2024-08/AIMS_LTMP_Report_GBR_coral_status_2023_2024_final.pdf
Re: (Score:2)
Did you intentionally post an old report to make your case? Firstly not only is your report showing that bleaching is an ongoing problem, that crown of thorns are an ongoing problem, and that there's only minor hard coral growth. You can't look at a picture, you actually have to understand what it is about and read the report.
But leaving that aside the actual *current* report shows every metric is down [1]https://www.aims.gov.au/sites/... [aims.gov.au] except for COTS, but that is largely due to the insane amount of effort
[1] https://www.aims.gov.au/sites/default/files/2025-08/AIMS_LTMP_Report_GBR_coral_status_2024_2025_final_web.pdf
Re: (Score:2)
> Last I heard, the Great Barrier Reef was thriving.
You last heard wrong. The Great Barrier Reef is surviving, and that is largely due to human intervention trying to keep it alive as Crown of Thorns devastate areas that don't get bleached. There's an active effort underway to try and ensure the reef survives its next summer (bleaching is predominantly a summer event).
You're being lied to or you are seeking out lies. Whatever the case may be no one with any authority or knowledge of the matter claims the reef is thriving.
Re: (Score:2)
> Last I heard, the Great Barrier Reef was thriving. Maybe that's why the focus is moving elsewhere.
The Great Barrier Reef can be called resilient. Whether it's thriving or not depends on the timing of the sample. 2024 saw the latest mass bleaching event. Prior to that, much of the reef had recovered from the prior mass bleaching event. Fortunately and unfortunately, much of the reef is comprised of acropora, which grows rapidly but is also extremely sensitive to temperature and therefore dies quickly during bleaching events.
In any case, it's obvious that the Great Barrier Reef mass bleaching problem
Re: (Score:2)
> The bleaching of a coral reef is cyclic, it's not a permanent destruction.
And summer is cyclic so global warming isn't a thing either right? No that article covers the periodic bleaching and recovery, but fails to mention that those periodic bleaching events are getting worse and worse.
5th paragraph down:
Despite this year’s good news, the trend is clear, and the next major bleaching event is only ever a summer away. All the planet’s coral reefs face the same threat. If global emissions are not brought under control, and quickly, the vast majority of reefs around the w
Re: (Score:2)
> The bleaching of a coral reef is cyclic, it's not a permanent destruction.
Utter bullshit from MacMann as usual.
Recent bleaching events have destroyed coral in many places and it was even mentioned in the summary; "more than 50% of the coral reefs around the world have been lost, mostly over the past 10 years". I've seen it with my own eyes, vast fields of previously healthy coral that is now completely dead and the structures have crumbled to the sea floor. Thousands of years of growth obliterated
Re: (Score:2)
I think the people working on those projects were aware of that. At least in most of the videos I've watched, it was a talking a point. Having more options or an easier time is certainly good. Snorkeling is something that I greatly enjoy and I think if more people had the opportunity to experience the beauty of nature they would be far more willing to help maintain it.
Whats the point? (Score:2)
How bout we fix the issue that's killing them off to begin with? If we just plant new ones won't those die too? Sounds like constantly replanting a farm who's soil has been salted expecting a different result each time instead of 1st removing the salt contaminated soil.
Obviously not (Score:3)
It would violate Betteridge's law of headlines with a question mark.
The answer is always 'NO'.
Sure, but ... (Score:2)
Won't a lot of space be taken up by the signs (or stickers) labeling it "lab-grown coral"?
Surely ocean life deserves the right to choose between natural and lab-grown... :-)
Fish secretion /s (Score:2)
Bleaching bone like skeletons of coral...... /s /s /humor
[1]https://www.smithsonianmag.com... [smithsonianmag.com]
Smithsonian Magazine Aug 20, 2013
From Gunpowder to Teeth Whitener: The Science Behind Historic Uses of Urine - Preindustrial workers built huge industries based on the liquid’s cleaning power and corrosiveness—and the staler the pee, the better
[1] https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/from-gunpowder-to-teeth-whitener-the-science-behind-historic-uses-of-urine-442390/