World's Biggest 'Single Species' Coral Reef Found 300 Years Old

[Anchor]
The world's largest single species of coral has been found in the Solomon Islands, an island nation in the South Pacific.

It is three times larger than the existing one and is estimated to be more than 300 years old.

Reporter Shin Woong-jin reports.

[Reporter]
The size of the coral in the blue sea of Solomon Islands is unusual.

When I measured it with a tape measure, it was 34m wide, 32m long, and 5.5m high.

It is three times larger than the existing largest 'Big Mama' in American Samoa.

The first discoverer said he thought it was a shipwreck at first because there was a huge thing in the water.

[Manu San Felix / First Discovery] [Director of Underwater Filming] I remember when I first found it, and as soon as I saw it, I realized I had found something unique. Because it was huge.]

A National Geographic documentary team and marine scientists recently discovered the coral near the island of Three Sisters, the southeastern tip of the Solomon Islands.

The estimated age is 300 to 500 years old.

The researchers reported that it is a single coral reef of a billion polyps called 'Pavona clavus'.

It's different from a colony where several species of coral combine.

The sea water was only 12 meters deep, but Solomon Islands authorities were unaware of its existence.

[Denis Marita/ Solomon Islands Culture Minister: I didn't know there was something amazing under the sea, but I just wanted to preserve the marine environment for my children's future]

Coral reefs are a collection of polyps belonging to the animal group, accounting for only 0.1% of the world's marine area, but they are home to 25% of marine life, like rainforests on the ground.

With global warming causing the world's coral, including Australia's Great Barrier Reef, to rapidly dissipate as water temperatures rise, researchers say the discovery has given them a small glimmer of hope.

I'm YTN's Shin Woongjin.