Text written in Basque and translated automatically by Elia without any subsequent editing. SEE ORIGINAL

Australia's coral barrier

Australia’s coral reef is one of the most beautiful marine wonders in the world. Located in the Coral Sea, northwest of Australia, it is the largest surviving coral reef on the planet. From the top, the view of this unique marine habitat is fascinating, it seems almost unreal. Thanks to its shallow and clean waters, the rich ecosystem born and inhabited at the bottom of the sea is easily perceived from the sky.

Many say that the Australian coral reef is the largest living thing in the world. In reality, coral is an organism of a few millimeters, a very small sea flower... but it has the power to take the calcium that is dissolved in the sea and fix it in its tissues... thanks to which it creates these compact structures that give it its usual appearance. When the coral dies, its calcium structure remains in the sea, so other corals colonize these structures and create new ones over the old generations. This process results in the formation of coral reefs. Australia is 2000 km long, the largest in the world. In addition, it is home to 1500 species of fish and 4000 species of molluscs.

The coral ecosystem is as fragile as it is beautiful, it is weak. Until recently, its main rivals have been pollution and disproportionate fishing, but fortunately the Australian coral reef is already a protected area. Now its main enemy is the warming of the planet. Corals are very sensitive to changes in ocean temperature, so there are those who say that the Australian coral barrier is a chronicle of an announced death.