Coral reefs are a marvel of the underwater world known for their beauty and ecological diversity. Although coral reefs cover less than one-percent of the ocean bottom, statistics show one-quarter of marine life depends on them for survival. In recent years, China has intensified efforts to protect its coral. Cao Chufeng talks to one expert to find out more. 

This is the vast underwater world of the South China Sea. Many of these coral reefs you see are repaired and planted by scientists from the South China Sea Institute of Oceanology, at the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Meet Jiang Lei, a scientist from the institute whose main task is to study and categorize coral. His job requires him to travel between the South China Sea and Guangzhou.

JIANG LEI, Assistant Researcher, South China Sea Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences "We can observe various phenomena when cultivating or selecting coral in the field. But to understand why these phenomena occur, further in-depth analysis is required. Our laboratory in Guangzhou will conduct basic analytical research relating to this."

"This section mainly consists of specimens belonging to various species of coral skeleton, collected from the South China Sea. We rely on them to further confirm the species of coral, and understand the biodiversity in the area."

So far, the institute has restored coral in an area spanning over 30-hectares in the waters. But Jiang Lei says scientists around the world face the same problem.

JIANG LEI, Assistant Researcher, South China Sea Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences "Currently, we're facing the most important issue, which is the warming of the climate. The rise in sea temperature causes coral bleaching, making corals more susceptible to death."

"The bright yellow, small round spheres we see under the microscope are symbiotic partners of coral, known as zooxanthellae. When coral encounters marine heatwaves, they expel the zooxanthellae from their bodies, a phenomenon we call coral bleaching."

Jiang Lei says scientists are now trying to solve this problem by planting naturally grown coral species more resilient to heat, or by trying to produce them through hybridization. He says China is increasing efforts to protect coral.

JIANG LEI, Assistant Researcher, South China Sea Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences "In our country, especially in the past decade, the best efforts in coral and coral reef protection have been through legislation. Secondly, in recent years, our country has invested a significant amount of research funding to support initiatives such as coral reef restoration and conservation."

CAO CHUFENG, Guangzhou "China started coral restoration more than 20 years ago. People's awareness of this undertaking and its technologies has grown a lot since then. In the future, Chinese scientists, along with peers around the world, hope to restore coral in a faster and more effective manner, also in a larger scale. Cao Chufeng, CGTN, Guangzhou."