Invasive coral species of the genus Tubastraea have been increasingly recorded in Southwestern Atlantic waters since the 1980s. Their invasion and infestation are mainly related to port and oil exploration activities.
This study reports a newly established sub-population of Lophelia pertusa, the dominant reef-framework forming coral species in the north-east Atlantic, on oil and gas platforms in the northern North Sea. L.
Sammarco, P. W., A. Lirette, Y. F. Tung, G. S. Boland, M. Genazzio, and J. Sinclair
Thousands of oil platforms in the northern Gulf of Mexico have provided hard substrate for settlement of Caribbean corals and have facilitated their range expansion.
Approximately 4000 oil and gas platforms exist in the northern Gulf of Mexico. These platforms provide hard substratum that extends throughout the euphotic zone, in a region where such has been rare in recent geological time.
Deep-water coral reefs are classified as vulnerable marine ecosystems, with trawling identified as the primary cause of reef destruction. Lophelia pertusa is the main reef-building species in deep-water coral reefs.
