Fertilization begins on the Great Barrier Reef: corals are recovering

Scientists who were working underwater at the time said they had witnessed corals

At the same time, sperm and eggs began to be released en masse.They noted that this is a good sign that the reef has been able to recover despite environmental threats.

Gabriel Guzman / Calypso Productions (CNN)

Australian marine biologist Gareth Phillips, along with a team of marine biologists, divers, students and photographers, descended to the bottom of the ocean to document the event.The footage allows scientists to monitor the coral population, as well as the general condition of the Great Barrier Reef, which is under the protection of UNESCO. 

Biologists have noted that corals reproduce by splitting and dividing for most of the year, but once a year they release at the same timebundles of sperm and eggs into the ocean.

Gabriel Guzman / Calypso Productions (CNN)

The Great Barrier Reef is a network of 2,500 reefswhich is located on an area of ​​348 thousand km². It previously suffered from discoloration due to the unusually high temperature of the water. Two-thirds of the corals are under threat.

But now biologists are convinced that the reef continues to live after damage: it has been in the recovery phase for more than 18 months.

Gabriel Guzman / Calypso Productions (CNN)

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