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Stanford researchers discovered a technique that lets bleached corals recover after touching healthy fragments. In a lab setting, a dying coral fragment and a healthy one from the same animal were kept in contact for about one week, after which the former returned to full color within seven weeks. The study, published in Science Advances, highlights the coral’s natural ability to heal when genetically identical tissues fuse, a process similar to successful human organ transplants. While the method shows promise, scientists caution that scaling it to restore entire reefs would require a healthy clone for every dying coral and continuous contact, which is currently impractical. The research offers hope amid rising ocean temperatures driven by this year’s El Niño, which has pushed Pacific waters to near‑record highs. By understanding coral resilience, the study could inform future restoration strategies and support coastal communities that depend on reef

By Claire D. | JQJO News