Boosting coral abundance on the Great Barrier Reef
Introduction
Scaling up coral restoration using innovative Symbiodinium co-culture and mass larval supply on reefs
Setting out larval pool floats. Image: Biopixel The coral larval restoration project is an innovative approach to rehabilitate coral reefs by co-culturing coral larvae and their microalgal symbionts, to enhance larval survivorship and fast track recruitment success of juvenile corals. This ‘Reef IVF’ approach is aimed at rapidly replenishing damaged Great Barrier Reef coral sites, restoring ecological functions and resilience of coral reef ecosystems. Our approach will significantly increase the supply of high-quality larvae of foundation corals and provide the world’s first mass production of larvae containing their microalgal symbionts; a critical “energy fix” for baby corals prior to settlement and re-colonisation.
