KEY ASPECTS OF THE STORY
1- CORAL
Whenever a new rain of plankton falls, the coral ‘hatches’ once more, tentacles reaching out at night to feed on the suspended particles. We see thousands of coral polyps as they catch the particles in an orgy. The coral polyps reproduce by dividing, and we watch the final contractions of a polyp that will soon release a kind of microscopic jellyfish. Separating from the reef that supports them, the baby corals are set free in the water. They won’t linger there for long. Soon, they will find a surface to settle on and begin a new colony. It snows backwards, with billions of tiny flakes of life floating away into the dark and the current. The moon is full, the coral is reproducing, and constellating the blue with myriads of fragile promises. We follow a delicate “branch” as it grows, forming millimeters of offshoots that spread and soon become active, for the colony needs food fast. The coral is very slow to grow, around 1 cm each year (see images from the summary). Some branching corals grow rapidly (10 cm/year).
The open polyps reaching out toward the open water are stirred by the current. The flows of water bring ample opportunities to catch
23 /
Powered by FlippingBook