Invertebrates
Cold-Water Coral
Desmophyllum pertusum · also called Lophelia coral
Growing in complete darkness without any help from sunlight-loving algae, cold-water coral builds reef structures so slowly that a single formation can take centuries to develop, only to be destroyed in moments by a single pass of a trawling net.
Overview
Cold-water coral, Desmophyllum pertusum, is a reef-building species native to deep, cold ocean habitat across temperate and polar waters spanning the world’s major ocean basins. Its ability to build reefs entirely without sunlight, extraordinarily slow growth rate, and critical role as deep-sea habitat make it one of the most ecologically important, if physically vulnerable, invertebrates found anywhere in the ocean.
A reef built on centuries, undone in moments
The stark mismatch between how slowly cold-water coral reefs form and how quickly they can be destroyed by a single trawling pass captures one of the central challenges of deep-sea conservation, where damage often proves effectively irreversible on any timescale that matters to people.
Status
Vulnerable, with reefs significantly damaged in many areas by bottom trawling and recovery expected to take centuries given the species’ extremely slow growth.
Cold-Water Coral: common questions
How does cold-water coral survive without sunlight?
This species builds massive reef structures in complete darkness, unlike tropical reef corals, which depend on photosynthetic algae living within their tissue and therefore require sunlight, relying instead entirely on capturing plankton and organic particles from the water.
How long does it take a cold-water coral reef to form?
This species grows extremely slowly, meaning a single reef structure can take centuries to develop into the complex formations found in some deep-sea locations, far slower than most tropical reef-building corals.
Why is bottom trawling so damaging to cold-water coral?
This species is highly vulnerable to physical damage from bottom trawling, and because its growth rate is so slow, damaged reef structures can take centuries to recover, if they recover at all, making the damage effectively permanent on human timescales.
Why are cold-water coral reefs ecologically important?
This species creates complex three-dimensional reef structures that provide essential habitat and shelter for a wide range of deep-sea fish and invertebrates, functioning much like tropical reefs do for shallow-water species.