Yesterday, a young crew made the long drive from Apollo Beach down to the Keys, but not for day drinking at Capt. Tony’s Saloon.
Coral biologists packed a brood of 1,050 coral babies into massive white coolers and slowly lowered them into a van for the journey to the Keys Marine Laboratory.
The elkhorn corals were generated from parents rescued from the Keys and raised at the Florida Aquarium. Now they’ll be planted on the reef or cared for in ocean-based nurseries — bolstering the health of Florida’s famed reefs.
The move comes at a critical time, as Florida prepares for another summer of likely record-breaking heat. The coral babies were spawned by from rescues from Florida’s Coral Reef — pulled from the waters before 2023’s mass-bleaching event decimated the reefs.
“The coral juveniles we are transferring today are made up of many new mother and father combinations that we hope will be more resilient to future stressors,” Keri O’Neil, director of the Aquarium’s Coral Conservation Program, said in a release.
“By working together, we’re protecting a reef that’s essential to our environment, our economy, and the thousands of species that call it home, she added.”
What’s next for the kids?
Once they arrive at the laboratory, the corals will be “slowly acclimated to temperature-controlled seawater systems” before being divvied up to the Coral Restoration Foundation, Reef Renewal USA, Mote Marine Laboratory, and Sustainable Ocean and Reefs.
Most of the groups will be given ~300 coral babies that they’ll then place in ocean-based nurseries. The centers will eventually plant the corals at seven iconic reefs within the Florida Keys — which are part of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.
Why replant the corals?
According to the Aquarium, they’ll bolster the struggling reefs by:
- Providing new shelter for fish, sea turtles, and other marine life
- Protecting coastlines from hurricanes and erosion
- Boosting the reef’s overall health, as they are integral to Florida’s outdoor recreation, fishing, and tourism industries
