Some of our study subjects...

 

Acropora millepora on the Great Barrier Reef, November 2008 Acropora tenuis, Great Barrier Reef
Acropora millepora colony , Cattle bay, Orpeus Island, Great Barrier Reef Acropora tenuis, Orpeus Island, Great Barrier Reef. This colony is set and ready to spawn- if you look carefully you can see the orange/red gamete packets in some of the polyp mouths Spawning Montastraea faveolata, Gulf of Mexico. Video is copyright Tsapis/Vize
     
   
 

Acropora millepora planula (planulae plural). These are the planktonic coral larvae that develop about 3 days after fertilization and drift with the ocean currents until they sense a good place to settle.The field of view is approximately 2 cm across, so each planula is about 1 mm long. The planulae have cilia that beat and provide motility.