Feeding Coral Nurseries with UZELA: A New Hope for Coral Restoration

As ocean temperatures continue to rise due to climate change, coral reefs around the world are facing challenges like the Fourth Global Bleaching event that rocked Florida’s Coral Reef last summer.

Coral Restoration Foundation™ (CRF) is thrilled to collaborate with Dr. Andréa G. Grottoli from Ohio State University to test an innovative technology: UZELA—the Underwater Zooplankton Enhancement Light Array (US Patent Application Number PCT/US2023/078357).

CRF team members on the water with Dr. Andrea Grottoli. Credit: Dr. Photo courtesy of Andrea Grottoli

Zooplankton are microscopic animals that float in the ocean, and they’re a critical food source for corals. Corals that consume more zooplankton tend to be healthier, grow faster, and are more resilient to stress. UZELA works by attracting zooplankton to the area around the corals, providing them with a more abundant food source.

The idea is simple but powerful; by giving corals more to eat, we can help them build up their strength before heat stress hits and improve their chances of survival afterward.

Starting in July 2024, CRF began a collaboration with Dr. Grottoli to test UZELA at our Tavernier nursery site. To test UZELA's impact, Grottoli's lab will measure a suite of coral health indicators. Through advanced analysis, Grottoli's team will assess the efficacy of UZELA at enhancing coral health and growth, providing a clear picture of UZELA's effectiveness.

If UZELA proves effective, it could revolutionize coral nursery operations. By improving coral health and survival rates, UZELA could help reduce the time it takes for corals to grow to a size suitable for outplanting onto reefs. This would not only enhance the success of coral restoration projects but also reduce the operating costs associated with growing and maintaining nursery corals.

The results of this study will be closely monitored and analyzed over the next 6 months. By enhancing coral growth and survival in the face of increasing heat stress, UZELA offers a new way to assist in the recovery of these vital ecosystems.

The UZELA lights installed in our nursery. Credit: Phanor Montoya-Maya

At Coral Restoration Foundation™, we’re committed to finding innovative solutions to the challenges facing our coral reefs. We believe that with the right tools and strategies, we can help restore and protect these beautiful, biodiverse ecosystems for future generations.

Stay tuned for updates on this exciting project and our ongoing efforts to save our coral reefs.

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