Manatee County Coral Propagation and Transplant Project 8/20/2003
In the first coral propagation and transplant project on the west coast of
Florida (and possibly the entire Gulf of Mexico) Manatee County
Artificial Reef Staff, Reef Ball Foundation Staff and Volunteers from the Parrot
Head Club completed Reef Ball Foundation coral propagation and
transplant training on Tuesday and Wed. of this week. We added the
following corals to the Eternal Reef Deployment (2001) on 7 mile Reef South in
Manatee County. A moment of silence was held at the conclusion of
transplanting in memory of the individuals in the memorial reef. The hard
corals were captive breed and propagated over a two-year period entirely in the
Reef Ball Research Aquarium tanks under a research permit from the FDEP.
These corals were the oldest captive propagated corals that have been tried in coral propagation work to our knowledge. It is an important scientific test to find out if the release of corals that have been kept in aquariums for long periods of time can be successful which would help to justify "genetic" banks of corals in public aquariums around the world as a protection against species extinctions.
(Gary Campbell, Parrot Head Club, Al Palumbo, Head of Environmental
Project Parrot Head Club, Bob Fluke Manatee County Artificial Reef Program
Coordinator, Bob Bixby, Manatee County Environmental Resource Management, and
Todd Barber during Coral Propagation Training.) [Not Shown John
Knoll, Manatee
County Environmental Resource Management and John Maclary 941
497-2868 Parrot head Club]
Here is the record we have of the plantings. Number tags identify each
Reef
Ball and individual Eternal Reef Balls with plaques were also noted by name.
(Common, not scientific names used)
#328 One Purple Colorful Sea Whip
(Leptogorgia virgulata)
#324 Two Purple Colorful Sea Whips (Leptogorgia virgulata)
#311 Nance B. McChesney 4 Purple Colorful Sea Whips, one Robust Ivory Tree Hard Finger Coral
(Oculina robusta)
#309 Robust Ivory Tree Hard Finger Coral (Oculina robusta), one Tube
Coral Hard (Cladocora arbuscula)
#313 three Robust Ivory Tree Hard Finger Corals (Oculina robusta)
#307 Gerrud Havenga 4 Purple Colorful Sea Whips, one Robust Ivory Tree Hard Finger Coral
(Oculina robusta)
# 312 two Robust Ivory Tree Hard Finger Corals (Oculina robusta)
# Unknown one Robust Ivory Tree Hard Finger Coral (Oculina robusta)
Main Plaque 2001 Community Reef one Robust Ivory Tree Hard Finger Coral (Oculina
robusta)
<Back to World Map (use browser back for one level back)
Copyright 1995 - 2003, RBDG, Ltd. all rights reserved. See brochure page footer for information on patents, copyrights, trademarks and service marks referenced, but not indicated, on this page. Other pages we maintain: Reef Ball Shared Resources, Reef Ball Foundation, La falda