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Ocean Portal by The Smithsonian Institution

Coral Reefs

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BLOG POST Making Science Sing: The Longest Time (Coral Triangle Edition) How do you make science sing? Just ask a couple of female scientists to sing about their research interests and their passion is quickly conveyed in a quirky little tune. Informative, inspir...MORE STORIES


	IMAGE GALLERY MORE GALLERIES Two Views of Coral Reefs: Thriving and Threatened Coral reefs are beautiful, vibrant ecosystems that house roughly one quarter of...
	BLOG POST MORE STORIES Hotspot of Biodiversity We have arrived as the advanced scouting party to the scene of this year's field...
	IMAGE GALLERY MORE GALLERIES Will Coral Reefs Survive Acidification? Nestled among the beautiful coral reefs of Papua New Guinea (PNG) is a place tha...

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					A School of Hawaiian Squirrelfish Apr 10, 2013 - 9:03AMCheck out the eyes on these Hawaiian squirrelfish (Sargocentron xantherythrum)! Because squirrelfish are almost entirely nocturnal, they need big eyes to absorb as much moonlight and starlight as they can in the dark. During the...

From Sea Sponge to HIV Medicine

Mar 26, 2013 - 9:40AM

Tectitethya crypta (formerly known as Cryptotheca crypta) is a large,...

Coral Spawning

Mar 15, 2013 - 9:07AM

Corals are sedentery animals, so how do they reproduce? One way is sexually...

SPOTLIGHT


Corals and Coral Reefs Coral reefs are the most diverse of all marine ecosystems. They teem with life, with perhaps one quarter of all ocean...

Treated Cancer Cells Jan 9 2013 - 10:51am These cancer cells have been treated with discodermolide, a chemical obtained from a sponge that grows on deep-sea coral reefs. It prevents the cells from dividing and spreading. Learn more about deep-sea corals in the multimedia feature "Coral Gardens of the Deep Sea" and about drugs from sea...	Shallow and Deep-Sea Coral Reefs Jun 7 2011 - 9:10am Unlike the shallow tropical coral reef pictured on the top, the deep-sea Oculina reef at bottom does not require sunlight. Learn more in the article "Coral Gardens of the Deep Sea."
What Is Coral? A Coral Polyp and Zooxanthellae Jan 26 2010 - 11:46am What are corals? Corals themselves are animals. But tropical reef-building corals have tiny plant-like organisms living in their tissue. The corals couldn’t survive without these microscopic algae–called zooxanthellae (zo-zan-THELL-ee). This cutaway diagram of a coral polyp shows where the...	A School of Hawaiian Squirrelfish Apr 10 2013 - 9:03am Check out the eyes on these Hawaiian squirrelfish (Sargocentron xantherythrum)! Because squirrelfish are almost entirely nocturnal, they need big eyes to absorb as much moonlight and starlight as they can in the dark. During the day, they hide out in the nooks and crannies of tropical coral reefs....
Coral Thicket with Lobster Jun 7 2011 - 12:16pm A thicket of white stony coral (Lophelia pertusa) shelters a squat lobster (Eumunida picta). This is the typical shape of this widespread species of deep-sea coral. See more pictures of coral in our Deep-sea Corals article.	Submersible with Coral Samples Jun 7 2011 - 1:00pm The Johnson-Sea-Link submersible reaches the ocean’s surface with a specimen of Keratoisis bamboo coral inside its collection box. Find out how ocean scientists study deep-sea corals in our Deep-sea Corals article.
Bamboo Coral Jun 7 2011 - 12:57pm This 200-year-old bamboo coral colony is growing on the Davidson Seamount off the coast of California. The skeleton of this deep-sea coral has bamboo-like segments. See more pictures of coral in our Deep-sea Corals article.	A Rainbow of Crocheted Corals Oct 14 2010 - 11:30pm Visitors to the Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef temporary exhibit at Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History saw both the main installation created by to the Institute For Figuring and the stunning Smithsonian Community Reef created by local crafters.
Red Coral Jun 7 2011 - 12:49pm A fan-shaped colony of red coral (Corallium sp.) on the Davidson Seamount provides a perch for three basket stars as they feed. See more pictures of coral in our Deep-sea Corals article.	Bleached Corals, Pacific Ocean Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am Compare the healthy coral on the left with the bleached coral on the right. Increased water temperatures caused the bleached coral to lose the microscopic algae that give the coral color and provide it with food. More about coral reef ecosystems can be found in the Coral Reefs section.
Genetic Analysis of Coral Jun 7 2011 - 1:07pm A marine scientist performs a genetic analysis on a sample of deep-sea coral to find out if it is a known species or one new to science. Find out how ocean scientists study deep-sea corals in our Deep-sea Corals article.	Sneak Peek: Future of Coral Reefs in an Acidifying Ocean Aug 2 2012 - 4:37pm Scientists don’t often get the opportunity to travel through time. But nestled among the beautiful coral reefs of Papua New Guinea (PNG) is a place that provides a glimpse today of what could be the biggest future threat to coral reef survival: Ocean Acidification.
Deep-Sea Coral Sample Jul 27 2011 - 11:33am In the wet lab aboard the R/V Seward Johnson, Dr. Martha Nizinski examines a sample of the deep-sea coral Lophelia pertusa, collected 600-m (1,969-ft) deep off the coast of the southeastern United States.	Gold Coral Jun 7 2011 - 12:24pm Species of deep-sea gold coral, or Gerardia, often have a tree-like shape, as you can see in this specimen. See more pictures of coral in our Deep-sea Corals article.
Primnoid Coral Jul 27 2011 - 10:49am The branches of a primnoid coral in the genus Calyptrophora provide a habitat for galathaoid crabs. Learn more about the deep-sea coral reefs in our Deep-sea Corals article.	Coral Reef Biodiversity: A Comparison Jun 20 2012 - 9:46am How biodiverse is one coral reef compared to another? To find out, in Spring 2012, Smithsonian scientist Chris Meyer his students in the Indonesian Biodiversity Research Center (IBRC) course counted different crustacean species in the reef, breaking apart dead corals to count the crabs and shrimps...