Two remarkably resilient strains of endangered staghorn and elkhorn corals growing on NOAA CURES (Coral Urban Research Experimental Site) near the Coral City Camera at PortMiami. Both strains are native to a nearby shallow Fisher Island jetty, and did not show any signs of bleaching during Summer 2023 when all the other staghorn/elkhorn coral strains transplanted from offshore bleached severely and died. Sampling shows that they are both hosting Durusdinium zooxanthellae, the symbiont that confers the best bleaching resilience to corals, a potential first to documented in this species naturally in Florida. These is an exceptionally hardy urban strains which merit closer inspection scientifically to better understand its resilience as it may be key to restoring Miami's nearshore reef ecosystem.
