Fluorescent proteins in coral

[Sea_Student]

Sorry if this question is posted in the wrong section of the forum, I'm not sure what category to put this under.
I've heard that fluorescent proteins in coral (in times of low light) will magnify light towards its zooxanthellae to help it photosynthesize. Is this true?
I'm currently trying to understand the very interesting world of how corals get their colour from zooxanthellae, fluorescent proteins and chromoproteins and would appreciate hearing from a knowledgeable member.

 

[Timfish]

Coloration in corals is a VERY complex subject. Dana Riddle has written extensively on the subject and you can find his articles here and on Reefs.com. Here is a post that has some links you can follow up on:

QUESTION OF THE DAY - Do colorful corals mean you have stressed corals?

I don' think so. If they were so stressed out they wouldn't grow well so I think that when we have good color and good growth, they are probably thriving. I think our lights don't actually mimic sunlight and that we now provide the right spectrum to support colorful corals, but not full...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[Sea_Student]

Thanks for the link.