https://freerepublic.com/tag/lopheliapertusa/ en-us Sat, 27 Jan 2024 03:20:52 GMT Focus Forum 15 https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/4213144/posts A new deep-sea mapping project has revealed near-continuous reefs of cold-water corals spanning an area the size of Vermont just off the southeast U.S. coastline. Dense thickets of the reef-building coral Desmophyllum pertusum (previously called Lophelia pertusa) make up most of the deep-sea coral reef habitat found on the Blake Plateau in the Atlantic Ocean. The white coloring is healthy – deep-sea corals don’t rely on symbiotic algae, so they can’t bleach. Images of these corals were taken during a 2019 expedition dive off the coast of Florida. Image courtesy of NOAA Ocean Exploration, Windows to the Deep 2019. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~... Live Science https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/4213144/posts#comment Sat, 27 Jan 2024 03:20:52 GMT