Corals are often called the trees of the rainforests of the sea—vital to marine ecosystems, yet widely misunderstood. They’re animals, not plants or rocks, and they’re disappearing at an alarming rate due to a range of human-driven stressors.
During my ten years as a coral restoration biologist, one question kept surfacing: “So... what exactly are corals?” One person even asked, “Aren’t they just slimy rocks?”
I didn’t realize it at the time, but that simple, curious question would eventually inspire the title of my TEDx Saint Thomas talk.
To help people see corals in a new light, I began photographing them like portraits—isolated against a black backdrop. This approach not only highlights their intricate forms but also reveals subtle, often overlooked behaviors that are hidden in typical reef scenes. By bringing corals to the forefront, the images invite a deeper understanding of these complex and fascinating animals.
coral budding
Just as all trees start from a single seed, all corals start from a single polyp.
Eventually this polyp begins to clone itself through a process called budding.
Finally the polyp splits into two, creating a coral colony. This process can happen hundreds of thousands of times on some of the largest corals.
coral battles
The tamest of coral battles look like a slow motion shoving match as one coral attempts to overgrow the other.
The green tentacled Knobby Brain Coral on the right starts to over grow its conspecific.
This Great Star Coral polyp with its tentacles extended has a secret weapon (next photo).
Freakishly long sweeper tentacles extend past their normal tentacles at times when a coral wants to explore its surroundings or attack a neighboring coral that grows too close.
As a last resort, corals can expel their guts, and digest a neighbors exterior tissue. The Lobed Star Coral (right) attacks a Great Star Coral (left)
Polyps from a Lobed Star Coral (right), expel their guts to digest it’s neighboring Great Star Coral (left)
To view more images from Corals Are Not Slimy Rocks, visit the coral portraits gallery
recent publications
two-page spread in Oceanus Magazine - Vol. 57, No. 1, Summer 2022
Several of these images were published in the 2022 book, The Secret Lives of Coral, written by Dr. David Vaughan.
