"The public is welcome to donate more LEGO bricks to our coral reef revival project."
If you accidentally break into a makeshift laboratory offshore Singapore, you might run into a group of scientists working on Lego.
Don't get me wrong, they're not just playing puzzle games to pass the time, they're doing an important scientific experiment.
Coral attached to Lego bricks. Source: WALLACE WOON
The purpose of the experiment is to study how to reconstruct the coral reef , and Lego bricks are the key experimental tools they have recently explored.
Neo Mei Lin, a renowned marine biologist at the National University of Singapore's Institute of Tropical Marine Science, explains: "We are trying to create a flat, stable surface for these marine animals to inhabit. It turns out, Detachable Lego bricks are very effective in helping to secure corals and giant clam shells (chē qú).”
Scientists filled rows of saltwater tanks with coral fragments, barnacles , ascidians, giant Clams, sea urchins and sea cucumbers and other marine invertebrates , fix coral fragments collected in the sea on Lego blocks. If all goes well, these animals will grow together and form a new reef.
Use Lego bricks to simulate reef for coral and other marine organisms to attach to, and then cultivate a new coral reef - this method sounds weird, but it really makes Neo and her colleagues Jani Tanzil sees hope.
Coral fragments ready for breeding experiments.Source: WALLACE WOON
Recently, the duo are leading an ambitious coral reef restoration project, with the goal of restoring coral populations in Singapore's waters that have been damaged by large-scale land reclamation and coastal development over the years .
As we all know, coral reefs are calcium carbonate structures superimposed by the remains of polyps and other marine life in the process of growth over hundreds to thousands of years, and these reefs are also billions of coral polyps, mollusks, carapaces The marine ecological environment where thousands of animals and plants, such as animals and fish, live.
In a sense, what people mean by coral reefs is usually not just those hard calcium carbonate structures, but also the organisms that live on them. Together, they make up coral populations, and together they make up those colorful underwater scenes that people see when diving.
Giant Tridacna. Image source: WALLACE WOON
Once the sea area is artificially landfilled or developed, coral reefs and marine life attached to them will lose their homes. At the same time, this will directly change the seabed ecology and cause irreversible environmental damage. "Land development has greatly damaged the ocean," Tanzier said. "We as marine scientists have seen the impact on coastlines, mangroves and seagrass." Chance. "While ecology and climate are changing faster than we thought, coral reefs have proven to be more resilient than we thought, surviving both marginalized and highly urbanized environments," Neo said.
In recent years , oceanographers have thought of many ways to save corals.In Hong Kong, marine biologists have used 3D design and printing technology to create "coral reef trays" that allow broken corals to grow attached to them, thereby speeding up the process of coral restoration in the surrounding waters. Coral fragments are generally difficult to survive after they are separated from the main body of coral. Coral reef trays that mimic the shape of coral reefs can provide a foundation for them to attach and grow, giving them a second chance to survive. This method has also been applied in Maldives and other sea areas.
3d prints 's clay coral reef plate. Source: wired
The use of Lego bricks is similar. But LEGO can also piece together coral fragments grown on different blocks to form larger and larger coral colonies.
Neo and Tanzier are excited: "These blocks have been very effective for our research, and we welcome more Lego donations from the public for our coral reef revival project." , Scientists also want to explore space-saving methods, such as borrowing the vertical farming method commonly used on Singaporean land, for coral cultivation.
"Vertical farming is not new, but this is the first time we have tried it on Singapore corals," Tanzier said. "We want to grow corals that are genetically diverse and diverse. This will help them establish more resilience and increase its chances of survival in the wild."
Lego bricks and corals are hung vertically on a fishing line. Source: WALLACE WOON
Therefore, the Lego blocks in front of you are just a small piece of a complex puzzle. Due to the complexity of corals and their slow growth rate, this reef restoration project is expected to take several years.
The road ahead is obstructive and long.Neo was very motivated: "Many people think that we should save marine life like dolphins and whales, but few people realize that in fact marine protection , we must first start with the habitat." She said, " Now we find that coral reefs themselves have not lost hope of 'living', and how can we, as marine biologists, give up?"
