News > Great Barrier Reef: scientists discover 400-year-old giant coral

Great Barrier Reef: scientists discover 400-year-old giant coral

At 10.5 metres wide, four centuries old and twice the size of its nearest cousin, an “exceptionally large” coral has been discovered on the Great Barrier Reef – the widest known in the area. The coral is 5.3 metres tall, “hemispherical in shape”.

It is roughly the length and height of a modern double-decker bus. It is thought to have spawned on the reef between 421 and 438 years ago.