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科学 · 巨型珊瑚测绘

科科斯珊瑚测绘长度达1.56公里——但它是一个个体吗？

数十年来，潜水员一直熟悉科科斯的蔷薇珊瑚群的部分区域。一项调查揭示了它的巨大范围，而遗传学检测将确定它是一个个体还是由许多个体组成。

文字 阅读需 4 分钟 · 15 个来源

HeyDex

原语言视频

译自英文原文。

30多年来，以科科斯群岛为基地的潜水运营者迪特·格哈德一直知道这片巨大珊瑚带的部分区域。但他和前往不同潜点的潜水员都不知道，他们熟悉的地点之间以及更远处还有多大范围。研究人员如今绘制出了更完整的图景：一片蔷薇珊瑚群沿着科科斯（基林）群岛附近的礁体绵延1.56公里。⁠1

这项调查确认了有记录以来规模最大的珊瑚群之一，但尚未确认它是一个巨大的遗传学个体。研究人员沿这片珊瑚群采集了约50份样本，计划用来回答这一独立问题；如果答案成立，这一非凡的测绘成果就可能让它成为世界上最大的单体珊瑚的有力竞争者。⁠1⁠6

这种区别很重要。研究人员已经完成了对珊瑚群延伸范围的测量，但尚未完成对其生物学性质的准确判定。

1.56公里沿礁体测得的长度 12
12次潜水完成全范围测绘所需 1
约50份采集用于遗传学检测的样本 1

这片珊瑚群位于这一偏远的印度洋澳大利亚领地外礁上。它属于蔷薇珊瑚，属名为Pachyseris；现有报道尚未确定其具体物种。公里数描述的是它沿礁体延伸的长度，而非周长。⁠2

新华社援引昆士兰博物馆提供的数据称，其平均宽度为36.5米，估算面积约为56,940平方米，相当于约5.7公顷。报道给出的水深范围为14至65米。这些尺寸描述的是沿礁坡延伸的珊瑚，并非一块宽度和深度处处相同、形状规整的整体。⁠3⁠14

有人将其长度比作约100辆首尾相连的公交车。但要理解它的规模，更有说服力的或许是研究人员在水下试图追踪它时发生的事情。⁠1

当卷尺量不下去时

格哈德向阿德莱德大学海洋生物学家JP·霍布斯介绍了他在几个潜点见过的珊瑚。这些潜点彼此相距约600米。霍布斯想知道这些斑块是否相连；沿线追踪后，他们发现这片珊瑚群还延伸到了熟悉的潜点之外。当地知识提供了起点，却没有划定边界。⁠1

格哈德告诉ABC：“很多人可能没有意识到它的规模有多大，实际延伸了多远。”他在30多年前首次看到这片珊瑚，这证明当地人长期以来一直在观察它，却不能说明珊瑚的生物学年龄。⁠1

研究团队在近几个月对这片珊瑚群进行了正式测绘和考察。起初，他们采用费力而直接的方法：研究人员用卷尺一厘米一厘米地测量。随着他们沿着珊瑚群继续前进，这种方法变得不切实际。⁠1

潜了几次之后，我们才意识到，还没游到珊瑚的尽头，我们就快没气了。

JP·霍布斯 1

随着珊瑚群的规模逐渐显现，研究人员改用GPS追踪。他们用了12次潜水才绘出其完整范围。这并不是发现了此前无人见过的珊瑚，而是发现那些熟悉的水下地标原来属于一片规模大得多、看起来连续相连的珊瑚群。⁠1

地图无法确定遗传身份

昆士兰博物馆和詹姆斯库克大学的研究人员正合作开展这项调查。完成测绘后，遗传学研究将着手回答一个无法仅靠追踪珊瑚群形状解决的问题：它究竟是一个个体，还是由许多遗传上不同的个体组成。⁠1

霍布斯告诉ABC：“我们沿着这片珊瑚采集了大约50份样本，之后会做遗传学分析，以确定它是一个个体还是许多个体。”这些样本是寻找答案的材料，而不是答案本身。目前已有报道中，没有公布完成的遗传学结果，也没有确定的发布时间。⁠1

因此，能否成为单体珊瑚纪录保持者仍取决于后续结果。称它为有记录以来规模最大的珊瑚群之一，有证据支持；宣称它是世界上最大的生物，则没有依据。在尚未公布检测结果的情况下，它的测量规模本身就已十分惊人，无须借用尚未得到证实的结论来强调。⁠2⁠6

更深层的问题关乎生存

除了纪录的可能性之外，还有一个更具普遍意义的问题：这片珊瑚为何如此繁盛？较深的水域能否帮助珊瑚躲避那些会破坏浅水珊瑚礁的扰动？

霍布斯希望研究较深水域能否成为避难所，庇护遭受白化或气旋袭击的浅水珊瑚。科科斯珊瑚群为研究人员提供了一个考察这一可能性的地点。但仅凭它的存在，并不能证明水深解释了它的状况，也不能证明较深的珊瑚礁普遍安全。⁠1

现有报道没有量化这片珊瑚群的白化、死亡或气旋损害情况。要确定它能够持续存在的原因，需要的不只是令人惊叹的尺寸。一片面积广阔的活珊瑚可以表明这里是宝贵的研究地点，但尚不能揭示它存活下来的机制。

格哈德将这些海域日益受到科学界关注，归因于科科斯群岛和圣诞岛周边海洋公园的设立。霍布斯认为，这些岛屿与世隔绝，为研究与其他地区珊瑚礁相关的问题提供了机会。目前，潜水员数十年来的观察已成为一项经测绘确认、绵延数公里的发现。下一项发现必须通过研究地图无法展示的内容来取得。⁠1

来源12

在此处引用的来源中，Phys.org最先发布，比本报道播出早2天。 随后还有7家媒体发布。
  1. Phys.org
  2. The Questionable Times
  3. Forschung und Wissen
  4. ZME Science
  5. RealTech Media
  6. Yahoo News
  7. ABC Western Australia
  8. News Dive
  9. HeyDay News

4家媒体未注明日期：news.cnnewsgather.comNewsreelTravMedia

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来自 12 家媒体的 15 个来源· 引用最多的优先

播出原貌
  1. A rose coral formation stretches 1.56 kilometres along the reef off Cocos. Researchers have mapped one of the largest coral formations ever recorded. Its deeper-water growth could help scientists investigate refuges for corals damaged by bleaching and cyclones.
  2. They're now testing whether that entire stretch is one genetic individual or many.
  3. The coral grows on the outer reef of the Cocos, or Keeling, Islands. This remote Australian territory lies in the Indian Ocean. Local divers knew parts of the expanse for decades before researchers measured how far it continued.
  4. The survey puts a number on something divers couldn't see from a single site. The length is roughly equivalent to 100 buses laid end to end. Researchers identify the formation as rose coral, in the genus Pachyseris. They formally mapped and examined it over recent months.
  5. The formation averages 36.5 metres wide and covers about 56,940 square metres. It extends through depths of 14 to 65 metres. Those dimensions describe coral spreading along a reef slope, with its width and depth varying along the way.
  6. Its approximate area has also been compared with three Melbourne Cricket Grounds. But the discovery that changed researchers' understanding came from following the coral between familiar dive sites. Cocos-based dive operator Dieter Gerhard had first seen the expanse more than 30 years ago.
  7. Gerhard alerted Adelaide University marine biologist JP Hobbs after seeing coral at several dive sites. Those sites were around 600 metres apart. Hobbs wondered whether the patches connected, and the survey found that the formation continued beyond them.
  8. Gerhard said people hadn't realised its size or how far it went. His decades of observations gave researchers a starting point. Hobbs and the team then began measuring centimetre by centimetre with tape measures. As they followed the coral, their supply of air became the practical limit.
  9. The divers ran out of air before they could reach the coral's end, Hobbs said. The team switched from tape measures to GPS tracking as the scale became clear. It took 12 dives to map the full extent.
  10. Researchers from Queensland Museum and James Cook University are collaborating on the investigation. With the length mapped, they're tackling a question the shape alone can't settle. A continuous-looking expanse can leave researchers uncertain about how many genetically distinct individuals it contains.
  11. The team collected about 50 samples along the coral for genetic testing. Those samples will help determine whether the expanse represents one individual or many. A single genetic individual could make this a contender for the world's largest single coral.
  12. The formation already ranks among the largest recorded coral expanses. Its possible single-coral record depends on the DNA result. Meanwhile, the coral's growth in deeper water gives researchers another question to investigate: whether depth can help shelter corals from disturbances that damage shallow reefs.
  13. Hobbs wants to investigate whether deeper areas can act as refuges when bleaching or cyclones damage shallow-water corals. Scientists still need to find out whether depth helps explain why this coral is thriving. Its growth gives them a place to investigate.
  14. Gerhard links growing scientific interest to the declaration of marine parks around Cocos and Christmas Island. Hobbs sees the islands' isolation as an opportunity to explore questions relevant to reefs elsewhere. The genetic testing is still underway, and the team hasn't given a firm date for the results.

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