The Secret Life of Corals

• First-ever entertaining and comprehensive overview of how corals live, reproduce, grow, and defend themselves and their turf
• Details how corals are actually a combination of four unlikely partners—the animal, plants, microbes, and minerals—that work together in a curious fashion to create these amazing creatures
• Discusses the impacts of climate change on corals, with special attention to how each partner of the coral is affected in different ways
• Delivers a vivid and enjoyable description of the lifecycle of corals and how they reproduce both sexually and asexually
• Explains why corals are important to life, both under the sea and on land, and how our human existence is actually linked to theirs
• Offers hope for the future with a discussion of cutting-edge techniques for coral restoration
• A portion of all sales of the book will go to replanting corals around the world

Preface Introduction: Dave’s Journey Part I—What Is a Coral? 1 • The Importance of Coral Reefs 2 • What Exactly Is a Coral? 3 • Animal: The Coral Polyp 4 • Plant: The Algae Within 5 • Microbe: Immunity from the Outside In 6 • Mineral: Caught Between a “Rock and a Hard Place” 7 • Coral Growth, the Odyssey from Larvae to Reef Part II—Sex, War, and Rocks that Don’t Roll 8 • The Fossil Record—How Fast Is the Slow Growth of Coral? 9 • Coral Sex and Bundles of Joy 10 • A Deep Dive into Sexual Strategies 11 • The Fantastic Journey and Search for the First and Final Home 12 • Coral Wars—Slow Motion Fighting with Specialized Weapons 13 • Cosmic Inner Space and Deepwater Corals 14 • Community Communication Part III—A New Hope for Corals 15 • Yesterday’s Extinctions: Five Previous Episodes of Coral Hide-and-Seek 16 • The Need to Consider Gloom and Doom 17 • Hope, Coral Trees, and Bucket Babies 18 • My Eureka Mistake and a Game-Changer for Corals 19 • Fusion and Con-Fusion: “Bring Out Your Dead” Part IV—The Future 20 • Size Really Does Matter, Not Age! 21 • Scaling Up Coral Production 22 • New Tools of the Trade 23 • Speed Bumps 24 • Moving Forward with Faith, Hope, and Love Acknowledgments Notes Index

Dr. David E. Vaughan has held positions in marine aquaculture research and development for over 30 years. For 15 years, he was the Executive Director of the Mote Marine Laboratory Elizabeth Moore Center for Coral Reef Research and Restoration in the Florida Keys where he started the Coral Reef Restoration Program. Through this program he was heralded with being the first to develop the new technology of coral micro-fragmentation which dramatically improves the rate at which coral reefs can be restored. In 2017 he received the Chicago Field Museum Parker/Gentry Award as “Conservationist of the Year” for his work with coral restoration. As the Founder and President of Plant a Million Corals Foundation, Dave is actively helping people around the world use micro-fragmentation as a scalable tool for reef restoration and is designing and building transportable land-based coral nursery systems that can be shipped to locations across the globe to train others in this “game-changing” technology for restoration. Dave plans to continue sharing his discovered technologies, and passion for coral restoration, to fulfill his goal of planting a million corals before he retires.

“Fantastic! This book reveals how remarkable and spectacular corals truly are. While coral reefs are now under constant threat from climate change, Dave Vaughan has illuminated a path forward—one that offers real hope for corals and all life that depends on them.” —Jeff Orlowski-Yang, Filmmaker, Director of Chasing Coral, Chasing Ice, and The Social Dilemma “Dave Vaughan has opened up a whole new perspective on the awe and wonder of the corals that reside in the ‘inner space’ beneath the sea. The significance of each coral polyp shines the light on the need for us to all live like crewmates, not passengers, here on Spaceship Earth.” —Nicole Stott, Artist ~ Astronaut ~ Earthling “Love it! A delightful adventure into corals—their biology, ecology, and the environmental pressures they face. Easy to understand and beautifully illustrated, this book is for anyone with an interest in marine life.” —Shirley Pomponi, Research Professor, Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute “I can’t think of anyone better than Dave Vaughan to tell the full story of corals! You’ll learn what makes corals so extraordinary and get an honest appraisal of their current state, but you’ll also come away with hope as he explains with infectious optimism the advances that now make it plausible to restore reefs on a grand scale.” —Mark Schrope, Director, Schmidt Marine Technology Partners