Coral reefs provide critical ecosystem services – tourism, fishing, coastline protection and biodiversity – supporting nearly one billion people globally. Yet, they are among the ecosystems most threatened by climate change. Several solutions currently tested to protect coral reefs come from marine microorganisms, yet they face significant limitations due to dilution and dispersion in seawater.
We propose to use microorganisms’ natural behaviors to enhance coral resilience. More specificaly, the project aims at identifying, through metabarcoding, the microorganisms that are naturally atracted to corals following in situ testing with an adapted microfluidic tool (ISCA devices). These organisms will be then cultured and reapplied as self-delivering vectors, feeding corals during marine heatwaves and promoting symbiont reacquisition afterward.
