Coral reefs are the tropical rain forests of the oceans: They are home to about one third of the world’s marine diversity and a central factor for the marine ecosystem. Unfortunately, coral reefs are just as endangered as the rain forests. Because of climate change, coral species are now disappearing on a massive scale. The fear is that they may even go extinct by the end of this century. On board the schooner Tara, a team of scientists travelled the Pacific Ocean for more than two years in order to research the living and survival conditions for coral. Biology professor Christian Voolstra from Konstanz, was one of the coordinators for the Tara Pacific Expedition.

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