The kelp forest off England’s southern Sussex coastline was once so abundant that fishermen had to pass through it using nothing more than muscle and oar, the density of fronds and their propensity to entangle making the use of propellers foolhardy. Today, no fisher need worry about having to sweat their way out to waters beyond the forest’s outer edge, for no such forest remains.

When scientist Erika Gress and superyacht owner Mark Robba connected via our Yachts for Science programme last year, it spawned a unique research trip studying black coral in Indonesia’s Raja Ampat. Richard Madden discovers the results of this perfect partnership.