Back in April, Dacorum Scuba chairman John gave an interesting Thursday night presentation called Coral: For Divers. It tied in well with club members’ underwater experiences during a trip to the Red Sea the month before. Notes from the presentation are now available in the members’ area on the club’s Google Drive.
John begins by looking at the worldwide spread of corals, then moves onto the different types of coral divers might expect to come across. By looking at specific coral examples we’d normally see, as well as some we really wouldn’t at the depths we get to, you get a chance to not only see how corals work along with their symbiotic algae, but also to take a close look at the different ways corals get energy from their nutrient-poor environment.
The talk helped to illustrate the fragility of corals and underscore the pressures facing them, through several different types of examples members were able to view in detail. Unfortunately the intricacies of coral reproduction which prompted some discussion couldn’t be covered in sufficient detail in the time available.
Gallery: Red Sea Trip, March 2023
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