This “golden tree” coral was too strange for any known family
Attributed to ScienceDaily. ENC is not independently verifying these facts.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/10/261007042116.htm
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- First on desk · 10/8/2026, 10:00:31 PMThis “golden tree” coral was too strange for any known familyOriginal link
- Update · 10/8/2026, 10:00:31 PMThis “golden tree” coral was too strange for any known familyOriginal link
Supporting passage from source
A brilliant yellow coral discovered off Costa Rica proved so unusual that scientists had to create an entirely new family to classify it. The meter-tall colonies rise from seafloors covered in brittle stars, inspiring the Tolkien-inspired name Laurinque elenya, or “golden tree of the stars.” Advanced genetic analysis revealed that the coral belongs to a previously unknown evolutionary lineage.
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