/ 2022 / Nature / Other

Coral Sand

  • Prize
    Bronze in Nature/Other
  • Photographer
    David Maitland, United Kingdom
  • Studio
    www.davidmaitland.com
  • Website
    http://www.davidmaitland.com

Like drifting, floating, worlds within an alien galaxy these spicules reveal the spectacular beauty found amongst the microscopic structures within many common marine invertebrates.
The hard defensive calcareous structures (spicules) within the bodies of Gorgonian corals, Sponges and Holothuria accumulate as "coral sand" on the sea floor and form a major constituent of many tropical beaches. Ocean acidification caused by climate change endangers these organisms