Gt Barrier Reef bursts with life as coral spawns

On November 23^rd last year, in an explosion of colour and a show-stopping sign of life, billions of coral babies were born on the Great Barrier Reef off the coast of Cairns.
After 18 months of border closures in Australia, principal marine scientist from Reef Teach, Gareth Phillips, said his excitement for the coral spawning surely reflected the mood of a nation emerging from COVID restrictions.  

“It’s the celebration of the year,” he said.

Coral spawning occurs once a year when corals release tiny balls which float to the surface where they break open, releasing both sperm and eggs that cross fertilize as they bump into each other.  

Speaking from the Passions of Paradise expedition 60 km east of Cairns, Mr Phillips said  
“I’ve seen the corals all go off at once, but this time there seemed to be different species spawning in waves, one after the other.

“The conditions were magical with the water like glass and beautiful light coming from the moon. It was so exciting that we even grabbed the skipper and got him in the water.”

Mr Phillips and crew set out to study this year’s spawning event as part of the Coral Index Project aiming to monitor several high-value reef sites.