Cauliflower Coral Conservation Project

The ground-breaking work will be particularly impactful as cauliflower soft coral also provides habitat for the endangered White’s seahorse around Sydney Harbour and Port Stephens.

This week, divers from SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium conducted a health-check on the corals placed in Sydney Harbour and determined an 82% success rate for the re-planted coral - with 65% found to be very healthy and a further 17% found to be alive, but in need of some extra care.          

Dr David Harasti, Senior Marine Scientist, Fisheries Research NSW Department of Primary Industries Fisheries Research, said, “The soft coral is at risk of disappearing from several locations in NSW. In the past five years, the soft coral colonies in Port Stephens have declined by 99%, primarily as a result of the large flood events.

“The growing of the soft corals in an aquarium and transplanting back into the wild is a pivotal step in preventing the extinction of one of the most critical endemic species of coral found only along the east coast of Australia.”

Laura Simmons, SEA LIFE Regional Curator Australia and New Zealand, said, “The cauliflower soft coral is incredibly important due to its unique nature and vulnerability and the advances we’ve made are really exciting! Furthermore, they can help protect and recover other threatened species, including the Endangered White’s seahorse, another conservation focus for SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium’s partnership with DPI Fisheries.”

Our team will now monitor the corals closely to understand if the re-introduced population is thriving or if it is being targeted by predators. When the results are through, they’ll determine what next steps are needed to help recover the vulnerable species. Stay tuned to learn what's to come for this amazing coral species!