A threatened species of coral was documented spawning at exactly 9:47pm eastern standard time for the first time in the Florida Keys. The Pillar Coral Forest houses a rare species of coral that produces both male and female colonies and reproduces sexually, unlike other stony corals that can reproduce Asexually. “We were so excited to see the girls,” said Kate Lunz, research scientist with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Researchers are hoping the spawning will carry fertilized larvae to other parts of the Florida Keys building up the reefs throughout. Lunz and her team plan to revisit the site to observe additional spawning events of the Pillar Coral along with other native colonies of Elkhorn and Staghorn coral. Read more here!

 The very first report of Acropora eating flatworms found in the wild has been released. 10 Acropora spp. colonies were carefully taken from the Lizard Island waters of the GBR. After being removed from the reef and visually inspected no AEFW or signs of their presence were visible. However, when these colonies were inverted and flushed with a high-pressure stream of seawater flatworms, as well as commensal crabs, became dislodged. Out of the 10 colonies studied seven of them bore this invasive and detrimental creature. While the presence of the commensal crabs could indicate a symbiotic benefit of protection for the Acropora nothing in the study confirmed that this was indeed true. Taking a giant leap forward for the fight against these predators, this study also lends insight into things like origin and hopefully finding a suitable predator for eradication in captivity. Dr Kate Rawlinson of Dalhousie University in Canada, has documented her findings here.