Researchers at the University of Haifa and Barcelona’s Centre for Genomic Regulation said Sunday that a native Mediterranean coral has evolved an unusual survival playbook—switching how it eats—to withstand marine heat waves. In findings published in Nature, the team explains who (an international genomics consortium), what (a chromosome-level atlas and cell-by-cell map), when (published Oct. 20, 2025), where (Haifa and Barcelona; field sites across the Mediterranean), why (to explain resilience under rising temperatures), and how (by comparing the coral’s gene activity with algae present and absent) the stony coral Oculina patagonica survives bleaching-level heat.
Most reef-builders depend on sugar-rich food from symbiotic algae and collapse when that partnership breaks. This coral can do both: bank fat when algae are present, then pivot to self-feeding when waters spike above ~29°C. “The Mediterranean Sea functions like a natural laboratory for climate change—it is warming faster than the open oceans, offering a glimpse into how marine life may adapt to accelerated environmental shifts in the future,” said Dr. Shani Levy of the University of Haifa, the study’s lead.
Give the gift of hope
We practice what we preach:
accurate, fearless journalism. But we can't do it alone.
- On the ground in Gaza, Syria, Israel, Egypt, Pakistan, and more
- Our program trained more than 100 journalists
- Calling out fake news and reporting real facts
- On the ground in Gaza, Syria, Israel, Egypt, Pakistan, and more
- Our program trained more than 100 journalists
- Calling out fake news and reporting real facts
Join us.
Support The Media Line. Save democracy.
The team reports that in summer, the coral ejects algae, boosts gastrodermal digestive and secretory cells, and increases immune-like cells—shifting from autotrophy to heterotrophy, more like a sea anemone. Come autumn, algae repopulate, and the coral switches back. The species, miscast for decades as an invader, is now considered a long-time Mediterranean resident that expanded as waters warmed, tolerating <10°C winters in the northwest and >30°C summers in the east.
To expedite follow-up work, the researchers released a public database containing tens of thousands of single cells with gene activity profiles. “The database is accessible through an interactive application that allows scientists to search, compare, and perform basic analyses,” the team noted.