ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates — On a boat off the coast of an island near Abu Dhabi, marine scientist Hamad al-Jailani feels the corals, picked from the reef nursery and packed in a box of seawater, and studies them carefully, making sure they haven’t lost their color.
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Photos: Coral evolution tweaked for global warming
A coral reef is shown in Kaneohe Bay on Friday, Oct. 1, 2021 in Kaneohe, Hawaii. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
Kira Hughes, a coral researcher at the University of Hawaii's Institute of Marine Biology, drives a boat in Kaneohe Bay during a survey dive on Friday, Oct. 8, 2021. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
Kira Hughes, a coral researcher at the University of Hawaii's Institute of Marine Biology, looks at coral growing in a tank at a lab in Kaneohe, Hawaii on Friday, Oct. 1, 2021. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
Coral ecologist Crawford Drury sets up test tubes to collect spawning coral eggs in a lab at the University of Hawaii's Institute of Marine Biology in Kaneohe, Hawaii, Saturday, Aug. 7, 2021. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
Test tubes are set up to collect spawning coral eggs in a lab at the University of Hawaii's Institute of Marine Biology in Kaneohe, Hawaii, Saturday, Aug. 7, 2021. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
Kira Hughes, a coral researcher at the University of Hawaii's Institute of Marine Biology, leaves Coconut Island as she navigates her boat into Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii on Saturday, Aug. 7, 2021. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
Kira Hughes, a coral researcher at the University of Hawaii's Institute of Marine Biology, looks at a test tube with eggs and sperm from spawning coral in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii on Saturday, Aug. 7, 2021. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
Kira Hughes, a coral researcher at the University of Hawaii's Institute of Marine Biology, uses a satellite map on her cellphone as she navigates her boat to a reef in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii on Saturday, Aug. 7, 2021. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
Kira Hughes, a coral researcher at the University of Hawaii's Institute of Marine Biology, looks at a test tube full of coral eggs and sperm collected from a reef in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii on Saturday, Aug. 7, 2021. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
Coral researchers shine a flood light into the Kaneohe Bay as lights from Kaneohe, Hawaii, are seen in the distance, Saturday, Aug. 7, 2021. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
Scientists pass a test tube of coral eggs and spawn collected from a reef in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii on Saturday, Aug. 7, 2021. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
A researcher separates coral eggs in a lab at the University of Hawaii's Institute of Marine Biology in Kaneohe, Hawaii on Saturday, Aug. 7, 2021. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photos/Caleb Jones)
A researcher separates coral eggs in a lab at the University of Hawaii's Institute of Marine Biology in Kaneohe, Hawaii on Saturday, Aug. 7, 2021. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
Coral grow in a tank at a lab at the University of Hawaii's Institute of Marine Biology in Kaneohe, Hawaii on Friday, Oct. 1, 2021. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photos/Caleb Jones)
Coral grow in a tank at a lab at the University of Hawaii's Institute of Marine Biology in Kaneohe, Hawaii on Friday, Oct. 1, 2021. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
Kira Hughes, a coral researcher at the University of Hawaii's Institute of Marine Biology, holds a juvenile coral that is growing in a tank at a lab in Kaneohe, Hawaii on Friday, Oct. 1, 2021. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
Fish swim near a head of coral in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii on Friday, Oct. 1, 2021. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
Fish swim near a head of coral in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii on Friday, Oct. 1, 2021. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
Kira Hughes, a coral researcher at the University of Hawaii's Institute of Marine Biology, dives on a reef in Kaneohe Bay during a survey on Friday, Oct. 8, 2021. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
A coral reef is shown in Kaneohe Bay on Friday, Oct. 1, 2021 in Kaneohe, Hawaii. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
Fish swim on a coral reef in Kaneohe Bay on Friday, Oct. 1, 2021 in Kaneohe, Hawaii. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
Kira Hughes, a coral researcher at the University of Hawaii's Institute of Marine Biology, dives on a reef in Kaneohe Bay during a survey on Friday, Oct. 8, 2021. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
Fish swim near a head of coral in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii on Friday, Oct. 1, 2021. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
Test tubes are set up to collect spawning coral eggs in a lab at the University of Hawaii's Institute of Marine Biology in Kaneohe, Hawaii, Saturday, Aug. 7, 2021. Scientists are trying to speed up coral's evolutionary clock to build reefs that can better withstand the impacts of global warming. For the past five years, researchers in Hawaii and Australia have been conducting experiments to prove their Darwinian theories work. They say they do, and now they're getting ready to plant selectively bred and other lab-evolved corals back into the ocean to see if they can survive in Nature. If successful, the scientists say the more heat tolerant corals could help save vital reefs that are dying from climate change. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
