COSMOS MAGAZINE
Despite appearances, not all corals stay put.
Credit: Getty
The mushroom coral, Cycloseris cyclolites, can pack up and “walk” to new habitats and new research has shown that it does so in pursuit of blue light.
Credit: Dr Brett Lewis
A team of scientists used high-resolution time-lapse imaging to discover that C. cyclolites moves using a mechanism known as “pulsed inflation”, which resembles the movement seen in jellyfish.
Credit: Dr Brett Lewis
It inflates and deflates its tissue in rhythmic bursts, dragging itself forward over hours.
This movement helps corals burrow, right themselves, and remove sediment.
Credit: Dr Brett Lewis