While most people take a plane to Egypt or Australia to witness the awesome spectacle of coral reefs, it’s a little-known fact that the seas off the coast of Britain are teeming with coral of our own.
Sophisticated underwater cameras have unveiled a previously unknown world of beautiful, multicoloured structures below the Atlantic waves, teeming with anemones, urchins and sea spiders. Scientists and divers have explored several locations around an aquatic mountain range 200 miles from Scotland.
“It could be the most significant coral reef found in recent years because of the diversity of animals that we found,” Neil Golding, Offshore Survey Manager told the Daily Telegraph. “There are hundreds of species down there and possibly even more that we have never heard of before.”
Even with the advent of such incredible news, there’s a catch. We’re destroying the reefs faster than they can grow — because the Atlantic corals grow in darker, colder water they only grow at a sixth of the rate of normal reefs.
It could be the most significant coral reef found in recent years because of the diversity of animals
Underwater exploration has found evidence of immediate damage from deep-sea fishing and trawling, while the United Nations Environment Programme reports of the danger posed by climate change. Alterations to ocean systems brought about by warming waters pose a major hazard to the food supply, and regrowth may never be possible.
So, think twice about jetting off on a plane to visit distant coral seas – you’re just blasting away at the ones we’ve got at home.
Pic via designatednaphour, some rights reserved
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