The world’s largest known coral, visible from space, has been discovered in the waters of the Solomon Islands.
With a circumference of 183 metres, the gigantic multicoloured organism is an intricate network of individual coral polyps that have grown for between 300 and 500 years.
The sprawling coral was discovered in the region of the western Pacific known as the “coral triangle” by scientists belonging to the National Geographic Pristine Seas team during an expedition to the Solomon Islands.
Mostly brown, with highlights of vivid yellows, blues and reds, the Pavona clavus coral is a haven for a panoply of marine species including fish, crabs and shrimps.
“Just when we think there is nothing left to discover on planet Earth, we find a massive coral made of nearly 1bn little polyps, pulsing with life and colour,” said marine ecologist Enric Sala, explorer in residence for National Geographic and founder of Pristine Seas. “This is a significant scientific discovery, like finding the world’s tallest tree. But there is cause for alarm. Despite its remote location, this coral is not safe from global warming and other human threats.”
Unlike a coral reef, which is a network of many coral colonies, this is a standalone coral that has grown uninterrupted from polyps derived from larvae that settled on the seabed and multiplied into millions of other genetically identical polyps over the centuries.
When the team initially spotted the living organism, which is 34 metres wide, 32 metres long and more than 5 metres high, they thought it might be a shipwreck. The expedition’s underwater cinematographer dived more than 12 metres down to the coral and discovered it was a Pavona clavus. Despite its size, this individual coral had never been documented, with local fishers possibly having mistaken it for a boulder over the years.
Ronnie Posala, fisheries officer for the Solomon Islands fisheries ministry, said: “For the people of the Solomon Islands, this mega coral discovery is monumental. It reinforces the importance of our ocean, which sustains our communities, traditions and future. Such discoveries remind us of our duty to safeguard these natural wonders, not only for their ecological value but for the livelihoods and cultural identity they provide.”
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Eric Brown, coral scientist for the Pristine Seas expedition, identified and measured the previous record-holding coral, located in American Samoa. “While the nearby shallow reefs were degraded due to warmer seas, witnessing this large healthy coral oasis in slightly deeper waters is a beacon of hope,” he said.