Studies have shown that coral splitting and reproduction can improve the resilience of the Great Barrier Reef

A study published in Nature Communications by researchers at the University of Queensland and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation suggests that the fragmentation and reproduction of corals can improve the resilience of coral reefs.

The findings were made by researchers at the University of Queensland and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, who looked at whether corals that split and multiply over months could more successfully spread their offspring across different reefs.

Dr Karlo Hock, from the University of Queensland's School of Biological Sciences, said: "Coral colony spawning events are one of the most spectacular in the ocean, with all coral colonies typically laying eggs only once a year. ”

Dr Christopher Doropoulos, co-author of the study oceans and atmospheres from the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, said: "Sometimes corals lay their eggs for two months in a row, which helps them synchronize the reproductive process to optimal environmental conditions and time stages. While the reproductive success rate during split breeding may be lower than usual because it leads to lower fertilization rates, we found that releasing eggs in two different smaller events gives corals a second chance and also improves their chances of finding new reefs. ”

The team brought together multidisciplinary techniques of modelling, coral biology, ecology and oceanography to model the dispersion of coral larvae in split-breeding events in more than 3,800 reefs that make up the Great Barrier Reef. They studied whether split-breeding events more reliably supply larvae to coral reefs, and whether they enhanced the ability to exchange larvae between reefs.

Professor Peter M. Thompson of the University of Queensland Peter J. Mumby said: "Split breeding events can increase the reliability of larval supply because coral reefs are more closely linked and there are more and more frequent larval exchanges. This means that split reproduction can increase the recovery potential of coral reefs in the area. ”

The researchers note that they also found that the natural process of restoration is sometimes more resilient than originally thought. It's all ultimately a matter of scale: if there aren't enough corals on these reefs to reproduce successfully, then any potential benefits of splitting and spawning may not matter. Critical to the sustainable survival of coral reefs is the mitigation of local and global threats to coral reefs, such as river runoff and carbon dioxide emissions.