Fish that eat coral actually protect it, scientists have discovered

Until now, coral-consuming fish were considered bad news. But it turns out their faeces more than repay the damage. Scientists have found that it’s packed full of symbiotic algae. This algae shares its food with its host. It’s made up of single-celled organisms called dinoflagellates. There are millions of them on each coral. But some coral species aren’t born with these microbes and must acquire them instead. Scientists from Rice University set out to identify how this happens. #fish #coralreef #coral #biodiversity #algae #riceuniversity