A mystery is solved: Why do corals glow?

Recently, Tel Aviv University, in collaboration with the Steinhart Museum of Natural History and the Inter-University Institute of Marine Sciences in Eilat, confirmed for the first time the miraculous phenomenon of corals exhibiting glowing colors (fluorescence) in deep-sea coral reefs, a mechanism

Professor Yossi Loya of Tel Aviv University's School of Zoology and the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History supervised the study, which was led

Researchers say the ability of aquatic bioluminescence has long captivated scientists and nature lovers

Over the years, a variety of possibilities have been explored, including: Is this phenomenon resistant to radiation? Improve photosynthesis? An antioxidant activity?? According to the latest research, the fluorescence of corals is actually a form of bait

In this study, the researchers tested their hypothesis; To do this, they first tried to determine whether plankton (small organisms floating with currents) in laboratories and oceans would be attracted to

To test the potential appeal of plankton to fluorescence, the researchers specifically used the crustacean Artemisia salina, which has been used in many experiments as well as in the food of

In addition, when crustaceans choose between two well-defined targets, their selection is observed in a random distribution in the experimental apparatus

In the second phase of the study, experiments were conducted in the natural habitat of corals, where fluorescent traps (green and orange) attracted twice as many plankton as

Dr Or Ben-Zvi said: "We conducted an experiment in the deep ocean with the aim of detecting the attraction

In the final part of the study, the researchers examined the predation rates of mid-glazed corals collected at a depth of 45 meters in the Gulf of Eilat and found that corals that showed green fluorescence had a 25 percent

Professor Loya: "The fact that many corals exhibit fluorescent color patterns that protrude from the tip of their mouth or tentacles supports the idea that fluorescence, like bioluminescence (which produces light through chemical reactions), acts as a mechanism

Dr Ben-Zvi concluded: "Although there is a gap in existing knowledge about the visual perception of fluorescence signals by plankton, the current study provides experimental evidence

Reference: Coral fluorescence: a prey-lure in deep habitats