Advancing reef recovery through insights into coral nutrition
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Coral reefs support immense biodiversity and human well-being, yet accelerating environmental change demands new strategies to strengthen reef resilience. Across ecological systems, balancing nutritional supply with organismal demand is fundamental to performance and persistence, but this principle has been rarely applied to corals. We propose a nutritional ecology framework that links coral physiological requirements with environmental nutrient supply and quality. By systematically addressing critical knowledge gaps of coral physiological requirements - including nutrient balance, quality, acquisition, and allocation - and integrating these with environmental nutrient data, a nutritional ecology framework can identify mismatches between nutritional requirements and availability that impact coral performance under stress. These insights provide a foundation for advancing restoration practices, from site selection to propagation effectiveness, while opening opportunities for interventions such as targeted nutrient supplementation or microbiome-based nutrient enhancement.
Source: iScience
Institutions: University of Technology Sydney, Scientific Centre of Monaco, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, The University of Sydney, Arizona State University, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, Australian Institute of Marine Science, The University of Melbourne, University of Konstanz
Language: English
Subfield: Ecology
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
SDGs: Zero hunger, Life below water
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,240
OpenAlex ID: W7124934426