Reef ecosystems are complex, three-dimensional marine habitats, typically structured by biogenic reef-builders such as scleractinian corals, coralline algae, or oysters, that support highly diverse, spatially structured communities of microorganisms, algae, invertebrates, and vertebrates. They are characterized by strong environmental gradients (light, nutrients, hydrodynamics), tight biogeochemical cycling of carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus, and intricate trophic networks linking primary producers, detritivores, and higher consumers. Research on reef ecosystems focuses on processes such as calcification, bioerosion, symbiosis (e.g., coral–Symbiodiniaceae associations), connectivity among reef patches, and responses to stressors including warming, acidification, eutrophication, and overfishing, with implications for ecosystem resilience and regime shifts.
Octopuses are remarkably intelligent creatures, as was demonstrated by Inky the Octopus's famous escape from the National Aquarium of New Zealand through a drainpipe back to sea in 2016. A new Dartmouth study shows octopuses ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 3, 2026
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Sharks need healthy habitats, and some have a strong preference for locations jam-packed with food, according to FIU research. A recent study of Caribbean reef sharks in the Bahamas, where shark fishing has been banned for ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 2, 2026
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Researchers at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) have developed a new method to predict coral bleaching five to six months before it occurs, giving reef managers valuable time to protect vulnerable ecosystems. ...
Environment
Jun 2, 2026
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Translucent, speckled, and barely the size of a grain of rice, a new species of sea slug has been identified in the coastal waters of Keelung, Taiwan. Because of its minute size and distinctive black and yellow markings, ...
Plants & Animals
May 26, 2026
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Research at the University of Sydney has found that scuba-diving tourism—widely promoted as a sustainable way to experience coral reefs—is causing frequent and often hidden damage to fragile marine ecosystems.
Plants & Animals
May 26, 2026
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589
A new international review has shed light on how offshore energy structures—from oil and gas platforms to wind turbines—shape marine ecosystems and the benefits they provide to society. The paper, "Understanding the role ...
Ecology
May 25, 2026
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A collaborative research team has revealed the long-overlooked carbon storage potential of coral reef ecosystems and how reef-dwelling fish, corals, and surface sediments jointly shape reef carbon reservoirs. The paper is ...
Ecology
May 22, 2026
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A new study from Adelaide University has found that when ocean acidification makes reef habitat less complex, the fish living there gather in smaller shoals that offer less social protection.
Plants & Animals
May 22, 2026
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The team of scientists from James Cook University, University of Western Australia and Edith Cowan University surveyed coral reefs in the West Australian Houtman Abrolhos group of islands (HAI), publishing their findings ...
Plants & Animals
May 22, 2026
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10
The arrival of a potentially powerful El Niño weather system this year could devastate coral reefs around the world already weakened by back-to-back rounds of bleaching, scientists warn.
Ecology
May 22, 2026
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