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__TwigTemplate_63b7eead6cd82de4cdc8542009826afe->{closure}() CallbackFilterIterator->accept() FilterIterator->next() (Line: 543) __TwigTemplate_63b7eead6cd82de4cdc8542009826afe->block_content() (Line: 437) Twig\Template->yieldBlock() (Line: 178) __TwigTemplate_63b7eead6cd82de4cdc8542009826afe->block_paragraph() (Line: 437) Twig\Template->yieldBlock() (Line: 165) __TwigTemplate_63b7eead6cd82de4cdc8542009826afe->doDisplay() (Line: 393) Twig\Template->yield() (Line: 349) Twig\Template->display() (Line: 364) Twig\Template->render() (Line: 35) Twig\TemplateWrapper->render() (Line: 33) twig_render_template() (Line: 348) Drupal\Core\Theme\ThemeManager->render() (Line: 491) Drupal\Core\Render\Renderer->doRender() (Line: 248) Drupal\Core\Render\Renderer->render() (Line: 484) Drupal\Core\Template\TwigExtension->escapeFilter() (Line: 72) __TwigTemplate_e5f45a7526071e46888566f46a8c0a80->doDisplay() (Line: 393) Twig\Template->yield() (Line: 349) Twig\Template->display() (Line: 364) Twig\Template->render() (Line: 35) Twig\TemplateWrapper->render() (Line: 33) twig_render_template() (Line: 348) Drupal\Core\Theme\ThemeManager->render() (Line: 491) Drupal\Core\Render\Renderer->doRender() (Line: 504) Drupal\Core\Render\Renderer->doRender() (Line: 248) Drupal\Core\Render\Renderer->render() (Line: 484) Drupal\Core\Template\TwigExtension->escapeFilter() (Line: 175) __TwigTemplate_4f0283ea7709ab0dc302778592d7de2d->doDisplay() (Line: 393) Twig\Template->yield() (Line: 349) Twig\Template->display() (Line: 364) Twig\Template->render() (Line: 35) Twig\TemplateWrapper->render() (Line: 33) twig_render_template() (Line: 348) Drupal\Core\Theme\ThemeManager->render() (Line: 491) Drupal\Core\Render\Renderer->doRender() (Line: 248) Drupal\Core\Render\Renderer->render() (Line: 238) Drupal\Core\Render\MainContent\HtmlRenderer->Drupal\Core\Render\MainContent\{closure}() (Line: 638) Drupal\Core\Render\Renderer->executeInRenderContext() (Line: 231) Drupal\Core\Render\MainContent\HtmlRenderer->prepare() (Line: 128) Drupal\Core\Render\MainContent\HtmlRenderer->renderResponse() (Line: 90) Drupal\Core\EventSubscriber\MainContentViewSubscriber->onViewRenderArray() call_user_func() (Line: 111) Drupal\Component\EventDispatcher\ContainerAwareEventDispatcher->dispatch() (Line: 186) Symfony\Component\HttpKernel\HttpKernel->handleRaw() (Line: 76) Symfony\Component\HttpKernel\HttpKernel->handle() (Line: 53) Drupal\Core\StackMiddleware\Session->handle() (Line: 48) Drupal\Core\StackMiddleware\KernelPreHandle->handle() (Line: 28) Drupal\Core\StackMiddleware\ContentLength->handle() (Line: 32) Drupal\big_pipe\StackMiddleware\ContentLength->handle() (Line: 191) Drupal\page_cache\StackMiddleware\PageCache->fetch() (Line: 128) Drupal\page_cache\StackMiddleware\PageCache->lookup() (Line: 82) Drupal\page_cache\StackMiddleware\PageCache->handle() (Line: 48) Drupal\Core\StackMiddleware\ReverseProxyMiddleware->handle() (Line: 51) Drupal\Core\StackMiddleware\NegotiationMiddleware->handle() (Line: 36) Drupal\Core\StackMiddleware\AjaxPageState->handle() (Line: 51) Drupal\Core\StackMiddleware\StackedHttpKernel->handle() (Line: 741) Drupal\Core\DrupalKernel->handle() (Line: 19)

Animals

Coral

Coral Classroom

Birch Aquarium is a leader in coral propagation which is critical to the conservation of species threatened by warming oceans. In Coral Classroom you'll see coral up close, discover what makes it unique and learn more about the aquarium’s coral conservation efforts.

Aquarium Map

Discover Coral Classroom

Coral conservation

Coral reefs are extremely important to our planet. They’re home to about 25% of all marine life, protect shorelines and coastal communities during storms and help provide a source of food to millions of humans worldwide.

Today, coral populations are in decline around the world due to a variety of challenges they face in the wild from climate change, ocean acidification, compromised habitats and destructive fishing practices. That’s why Birch Aquarium is committed to coral conservation.

Coral Propagation

Birch Aquarium has been propagating coral for more than 20 years. Over the years, we’ve shared generations of coral with Scripps researchers and accredited zoos and aquariums worldwide. Our work helps reduce pressures on wild populations and supports critical research.

Sometimes, coral will break off or “fragment.” This fragmentation is a natural process corals experience in some shape or form — waves, storms, and even animals living on coral reefs cause coral to break off into smaller pieces. For many species of coral, these fragments can keep living, and even grow into larger colonies of coral if conditions are ideal. Behind the scenes, our aquarists mimic this natural process and carefully fragment coral into smaller pieces. With proper care, these small fragments can grow into new coral colonies over the course of time.