The first coral reef in Italy has just been discovered

Off the coast of Italy, scientists have discovered the country's first coral reef. Although splashed with color and full of marine life, this strange reef looks like very little else on Earth.

In a new study published this month in the journal Scientific reports, researchers from the University of Bari, Aldo Moro, reported the discovery of the first reef in Italy. The "unique" reef extends for 2.5 km along the Italian Adriatic Sea coast, passing through the popular tourist site of Monopoli in Puglia.

The reef is at a depth of 30 to 55 meters and is known as a mesophotic ecosystem, ie it exists in low light conditions.

Most coral reefs, especially the brightly colored reefs of the sunny tropics, get their energy and nutrients through a symbiotic relationship with photosynthetic zooxanthellae (algae), which produce their "food" using light. However, in the dark depths of the Adriatic Sea, the Italian Reef does not have this luxury.

Rather, the researchers say the coral reef is composed of "non-symbiotic scleractinians" – called stony corals – that feed primarily on suspended organic matter floating around the sea, much like the other coral reefs found in the Mediterranean Sea. also why the Italian reef does not have as much color as the Great Barrier Reef and other tropical reefs, where the coral pigment comes from the the algae that live there (so when the water gets too hot, the corals expel them, resulting in leaching of the color or "bleaching").

"In the case of the Maldives or Australia barriers, the symbiotic processes between the madrepores (stony corals forming the reefs) are facilitated by light," said Professor Guiseppe Corriero, who led the research. The Gazzetta del Mezzogiorno.

"Our barrier lives in the dark and madrepores are these imposing structures of calcium carbonate without algae."

Nevertheless, it is always a remarkable sight.

Due to their unusual characteristics, the researchers argue that the reef should be considered a "unique environment", although it has similarities with other reefs in the Red Sea.

The coral reefs of the world are under enormous threat, mainly because of the pollution and bleaching of corals caused by rising sea temperatures. In previous decades, coral bleaching has occurred around every 25 years. Studies of the last years showed that more than 100 coral reefs spread around the world live these events every 5.9 years

Because of the fragility of these ecosystems and their value as hotspots for biodiversity, the Italian Regional Council of Puglia plans to creation of a new protected marine area off Monopoli where the new reef was discovered.

–