Twelve Coral Gifts for Christmas and 2019

By wildgirl -
2018 was designated the third International Year of the Reef (IYOR) by the International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI). This was precipitated by the most recent mass coral bleaching event; and follows two previous devastating events which led to the first IYOR in 1997 and the second in 2008. In the latest Report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), scientists predict the loss of many of the world’s iconic coral reefs if global temperatures continue to rise by more than 1.5C. To honour the reefs in the Caribbean, Dr Anjani Ganase brings us twelve gifts of Coral for Christmas, and the wish that we appreciate the ocean and coral reefs before they are lost.



The seventh day of Christmas, colonies of mountainous star corals, Orbicella faveolata, dance under the waves in the Florida Keys (Photo courtesy The Ocean Agency) 

The first day of Christmas, we have the yellow pencil coral, Madracis mirabilis, carpeting the reef slope of Angel Reef in Speyside (Photo courtesy Anjani Ganase)

The second day of Christmas, a meadow of finger coral, Porites porites, covers the seafloor
 (Photo courtesy Jahson Alemu I) 

The third day of Christmas, a forest of Elkhorn coral, Acropora palmata, reaches for the light in Turks and Caicos (Photo courtesy The Ocean Agency)


The fourth day of Christmas, a plating cactus coral, Mycetophyllia, peeks out from under a rock in Curaçao (Photo courtesy Anjani Ganase)

The fifth day of Christmas, the biggest boulder brain coral, Colpophyllia natans, you’ve ever seen in Speyside (Photo courtesy Rochelle Ramlal). 
The sixth day of Christmas, a cluster of pillar coral, Dendrogyra cylindrus, stand out from the reef in Conception Reserve, Bahamas (Photo courtesy The Ocean Agency).

The eighth day of Christmas, the massive starlet corals, Siderastrea siderea, blushes pink on Angel reef in Speyside, Tobago (Photo courtesy Anjani Ganase) 

The ninth day of Christmas, the brain coral, Pseudodiploria strigosa, mesmerizes us with its intricate maze pattern in Black Rock Curaçao (Photo courtesy Anjani Ganase)

The tenth day of Christmas, the fire coral, Millepora (in the foreground), keeps us off the reef with its fiery sting on Angel Reef, Tobago (Photo by Anjani Ganase)

The eleventh day of Christmas, colonies of star coral, Orbicella annularis, provide homes for thousands under the sea in Curaçao (Photo courtesy Anjani Ganase).


On the twelfth day of Christmas, the great star coral, Montastrea cavernosa, in Curaçao, wishes you a very Merry Coral Christmas, and all the best for 2019! (Photo courtesy Anjani Ganase)






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  1. HamzaNovember 18, 2019 at 5:27 AM

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