New coral area
Since Saturday 28 January 2012, Nausicaa, the National Sea Centre in Boulogne-sur-Mer, has been presenting new aquariums focusing on coral.
Through illustrations, videos and new aquariums, visitors will gain an understanding of what coral is, how it lives, the complexity of the reef environment in which thousands of species live and the importance of the reef for man. But coral, the greatest builder on the planet (reefs), is a fragile, endangered living being.
The various pools and aquariums at Nausicaa are home to fifty species of coral.
This strange animal is made up of tiny individuals that come together to form the reef and live in symbiosis with microscopic algae.
An explanation of the propagation and breeding methods developed in various world regions is presented at Nausicaa through the testimonies of the people who have adopted these techniques in the Maldive Islands (Reefscapers association). Structures with cuttings of coral will be on show in the pools.
Threatened reefs may be preserved by using new propagation techniques. Locally, associations are taking action to save their reef, allowing the people who make a living from it (fishermen, tourist sector, etc.) to continue enjoying the benefits it offers.
Reefs are often close to the coast in tropical regions, an area where many forms of human activity take place. It is essential to preserve them from an environmental and economic point of view.
Why are we propagating coral at Nausicaa?
To preserve coral in the natural environment and bearing in mind the many significant threats to the coral reefs (pollution, mechanical destruction, silting-up as a result of coastal development, etc), the National Sea Centre has set up its own nursery.
Approximately 90 % of the coral species in Nausicaa’s aquariums have been bred on the spot. The remaining 10 % are generally what we call solitary coral. The polyps do not form a colony, so it is difficult to propagate them.
Nausicaa also took part in the CORALZOO programme from 2005 to 2009, when the operation ended.
The CORALZOO programme brought together a number of European aquariums and research centres for an ambitious project: the better control of breeding coral in captivity, so that more establishments could exhibit living coral to their visitors.
One of the main outcomes of this teamwork was the production of a breeding guide, which explained that coral needed to feed on particles in suspension and to have lighting in order to prosper.
To find out more about this animal, visitors are invited to come and meet the Nausicaa’s crew during animations in the exhibition or on the Nausicaa TV’s interactive platform.
