The intense colour associated with coral found 30-150m below the ocean assists the species in capturing sunlight needed for photosynthesis, researchers at James Cook University have discovered.
While coral normally grows in shallow water, this ability to capture sunlight has allowed the coral to grow deep below the the shallows where coral is usually found.
Researchers have studied deep water coral around the Great Barrier Reef and found its capacity for using nutrients is better than that of its shallow water counterparts.
It was also found, however, that the corals 30m under the ocean are genetically distinct from shallow water coral.
Read more at James Cook University