Only a few weeks after a remarkable colony of Pavona clavus, claiming the title of the world’s largest coral was found and measured in the Solomon Islands, another giant coral colony was measured in Nusa Penida, Bali, Indonesia, and discovered to be even bigger.
In early December 2024, a team of young Indonesian marine biologists from Ocean Gardener, after receiving training from the Italian University of Milano Bicocca program ‘Map the Giants, located and measured what could be the biggest coral colony in the world!
The now famous Solomon Island Pavona colony is 34m wide, 32m long, and 5.5m high. The newest contender vying to claim the title of ‘World’s Largest Coral ’ is a colony of Galaxea astreata found on the north coast of Nusa Penida, off Sental Village, a very popular diving spot in Bali. Although hundreds of divers swim through that colony every day, not many of them realize the astonishing uniqueness of this particular natural living monument.
“This discovery has the potential to set a new world record. However, further testing is needed to confirm its status among the world’s giant coral colonies,” Ocean Gardener Research and Science Coordinator Manikmayang explained to the Indonesian National News. “The Galaxea colony was measured at 58 m wide, 71 m long, 10 m high, covering an area of over 4000 m2.”
