The Magic Circle of the Reef

The Coral Triangle reef is part of the so-called Ring of Fire, a 40,000 km volcanic belt that surrounds the land perimeter of the Pacific Ocean; its surface of six million square kilometers has suffered constant eruptions throughout history, causing magma discharges into the sea which, over time, has provided nutrient-rich sediments that have facilitated coral growth.

The Coral Triangle is home to the largest number of coral species on the planet. A magmatic soil that constantly provides nutrients has made the reef a garden in which sea fan, acroporas, table corals and sponges follow one another, all with a natural mission that collaborates in maintaining the sustainable ecosystem of this area and that is used by numerous species of marine fauna.

The ability of the Coral Triangle reef to adapt to climate change has alerted the scientific community, discovering that the main culprits are living beings of all sizes that live attached to the seabed, the so-called Benthonic. The life cycle of these species provides the reef seas with an enormous amount of biomass that nourishes the rest of the species, creating a feedback loop that everyone takes advantage of.

Pelagic beings live in the so-called reef water column, the zone between the seabed and the surface; they are species that travel the sea placidly, feeding when they are hungry and swimming slowly throughout their lives; they seem to be the most exploited beings in the ecosystem; they are an essential part of the magic circle of this geographical triangle that provides so much information for the fight against climate change.