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Glowing deep-sea corals

7/7/2015

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Corals from the shallow water of the Red Sea are mostly fluorescent green like this Platygyra coral (Credit: J Wiedenmann)
These glowing corals were discovered in the deep water reefs of the Red Sea (Credit: J Wiedenmann)
The fluorescence of this Lobophyllia coral changes from green to red when exposed to ultra violet light (Credit: J Wiedenmann)
Corals from these reefs are more than 50 metres deep (Credit: J Wiedenmann)
In the depths of the Red Sea, a magical world exists, where corals light up the dark. They harvest light, providing an underwater rainbow of beautiful colors. These fluorescent corals were already known to exist in shallow waters, but deeper down, new glowing coral reefs have been discovered. Found at depths of 50-100 metres, some of these corals even change from their natural green colour to a red hue when exposed to ultraviolet light.

The color pigments of the corals in shallow water protect them from light stress or too much exposure. They serve as a sort of sunscreen for the coral, to protect the "symbiotic algae" which lives inside their tissue. The algae produces sugar that fuels the coral. The coral in turn produces rich nitrogen and phosphorous waste, which acts as fertiliser for the algae. 

Source:  bbc.com




En las profundidades del Mar Rojo, existe un mundo mágico, donde los corales iluminan la oscuridad. Emiten luz, proporcionando un arco iris de hermosos colores  bajo el agua. Estos corales fluorescentes se sabe que existen en aguas poco profundas, pero a mayor profundidad, los nuevos  corales brillantes han sido descubiertos. Encontrados en las profundidades de 50 a 100 metros, algunos de estos corales, incluso cambiar de color, de verde natural a un tono rojo cuando se expone a la luz ultravioleta.

Los pigmentos de color de los corales en aguas poco profundas les sirven para protegerse del estrés de luz o de la demasiada exposición. Estos sirven como una especie de protector solar para el coral, y para proteger a las "algas simbióticas", que viven dentro de sus tejidos. Las algas producen azúcares que alimentan al coral y el coral a su vez produce nitrógeno y residuos de fósforo, que actúa como fertilizante para las algas.

Fuente:  bbc.com
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