Of course, the cows themselves are prey to other animals, like humans and coyotes ... jeopardizing the living coral that makes up reefs. Covered with long, venomous spikes, the crown-of-thorns ...

The animals prefer water depths between 15 and ... In large numbers, crown-of-thorns starfish can mow down wide swaths of coral reef. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN ...

Bleached coral reefs usually appear as an endless stretch ... “The soft corals were just decomposing—animals literally dripping off the rocks,” says Vevers of his dive in the Great Barrier ...

Coral reefs cover less than 1% of the ocean floor. But, they provide an essential ecosystem for a quarter of all marine life. One of these creatures — a type of sea slug — is actually an ...

Although they occupy less than 0.1% of the ocean floor, coral reefs are home to a quarter of all marine life - that’s more species than rainforests. Animals use reefs for shelter, food and laying eggs ...

For researchers, recent studies suggest that sound recordings could be an effective and economical way to assess the health of vulnerable coral reefs, since reefs tend to go quiet as animals abandon ...

They are very similar to the original communities and have contributed to the recovery of the functioning of the coral reef, a habitat where species usually grow very slowly. Thus, these colonies ...