Scientists discover coral's best defender against an army of sea stars
Coral reefs face a suite of perilous threats in today's ocean. From overfishing and pollution to coastal development and climate change, fragile coral ecosystems are disappearing at unprecedented rates around the world. Despite this trend, some species of corals surrounding the island of Moorea in French Polynesia have a natural protector in their tropical environment: coral guard-crabs. New research from the National Museum of Natural History's Smithsonian Marine Station scientist Seabird McKeon and the museum's predoctoral fellow Jenna Moore of the Florida Museum of Natural History has helped unravel the complex symbiotic relationship between these crabs and the coral reefs they live in and defend. Details from this study are published in the Sept. 30 issue of the open-access journal, PeerJ.