Ear: Coral

Scientists were stunned when they discovered that a shipwreck shadow they thought they had spotted under their boat last November was actually a mega-coral. The Pavona clavus, now the world’s largest coral colony, is located in the Solomon Islands, east of Australia, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.

Strangely enough, even locals didn’t know it was there, yet the single-structure coral is about 111 feet long, 105 feet wide and about 18 feet high, with a circumference of about 600 feet, according to measurements by National Geographic’s Pristine Seas. Estimated to be 300 to 500 years old, researchers say it’s so big it’s visible from space.

“Our survival depends on healthy coral reefs,” Solomon Islands Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele said. “So this exciting discovery underlines the importance of protecting and sustaining them for future generations.”

“Just when we think there is nothing left to discover on planet Earth,” said Enric Sala, founder of Pristine Seas, “we find a massive coral made of nearly one billion little polyps, pulsing with life and color.” (Photo: Manu San Félix/National Geographic/The Sydney Morning Herald)