Many coral polyps (left) collectively grow into a coral structure by laying down calcium carbonate cups (right). How they grow together is a kind of biological packing problem. Shutterstock. The ...

On occasion, it is of vital importance to consider how little we know about the spinning rock we all live on. Take coral ...

Without them, coral polyps turn white and starve to death. This phenomenon is getting more common and can destroy a whole colony in a few months. Login or create a free account to read this content.

This coral polyp lives as a loner and can even — very slowly — walk. Without legs. New video reveals details of its locomotion. B.M. Lewis et al/PLOS One 2025 () ...

A coral polyp close-up: ‘It’s totally horrifying!’ This stunning microscope image of a single coral polyp reveals not just its beauty and wonder, but its ghastly, horror-show nature.

IssueOur Coral Reefs are facing an existential threat from the impacts of Coral Bleaching.ProblemSea temperatures have become extremely elevated because of the ...

Corals rely on algae for nutrition, so once the algae has gone, this weakens the coral polyp and if the algae doesn’t return to the polyp, the coral will eventually die. Recovery is possible in some ...

ORLANDO, Fla. – Simulated moonlight. Perfect temperatures. A hum of bubbling saltwater. A team of marine biologists had done everything they could to set the stage for something akin to a ...

Then the coral polyps kick out the offending algae, and only the clear polyps and white limestone structures they’ve built remain, producing the “bleaching” effect. What's the future of coral ...

Single-polyp metabolomics reveals biochemical structuring of the coral holobiont at multiple scales. Communications Biology , 2023; 6 (1) DOI: 10.1038/s42003-023-05342-8 Cite This Page : ...

Coral is comprised of tiny individual creatures called polyps, which form a connected hardened shell when living en masse in a colony. The average polyp grows to about a quarter of an inch. 4 ...