Skeletal regeneration in a Red Sea scleractinian coral population

CORALS may be harmed by their natural enemies or by environmental conditions. The ability of scleractinian corals to regenerate damaged parts has been documented qualitatively by many investigators^1-10, but detailed quantitative data on the rate of regeneration have not been reported. Most reports dealing with the destruction of coral reefs have emphasised the long time required for recovery¹¹. I have found, however, that the rate of skeletal regeneration in a population of the branched coral Stylophora pistillata (Esper) is surprisingly fast. During the first 2 months of regeneration, damaged colonies grew twice as fast as intact control colonies. Within the same colony, damaged branches grew faster than intact branches, which resulted in a tendency to regain symmetry lost through breakage. Larger colonies showed a better capacity to resist damage than smaller colonies.