*********************************
There is now a CONTENT FREEZE for Mercury while we switch to a new platform. It began on Friday, March 10 at 6pm and will end on Wednesday, March 15 at noon. No new content can be created during this time, but all material in the system as of the beginning of the freeze will be migrated to the new platform, including users and groups. Functionally the new site is identical to the old one. webteam@gatech.edu
*********************************
Mark Hay, Regents Professor and Harry and Linda Teasley Chair in the School of Biological SciencesThe last hope for degraded coral reefs is under attack. A new survey of Fiji Island reefs has revealed the significant damage being caused by small sea snails, previously ignored by marine biologists. Scientists have dubbed the tiny snails "coral ticks" because they suck the fluid from young Porites cylindrica coral. Porites cylindrica is one the hardiest coral species and it plays an important role in the regrowth of shallow reefs -- that is if they can survive the onslaught of coral ticks. "Once the reefs are down and nearly out, these snails are piling on," Mark Hay, a professor of biological sciences at Georgia Tech, said in a news release.
