BLUE BAY, Mauritius — Every October, Blue Bay in southeastern Mauritius, named for its enticing waters, takes on a pinkish hue. The cause: corals releasing millions of eggs and sperm. This type of annual synchronized spawning is crucial to the survival of these corals. Now, scientists are pinning their hopes of saving corals battered by climate change on this natural phenomenon. A team of researchers from Mauritius and abroad is preparing to collect millions of larvae from Blue Bay this October. It’s part of one of the largest projects in the Western Indian Ocean, aimed at restoring corals through sexual propagation. “The project really starts from scratch,” says Gaëlle Quéré, marine scientist and project lead at Secore International, one of the partners for the Mauritius project launched

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