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Vomo Island, one of Fiji’s most cherished Mamanuca destinations, houses a Counting Coral Gene Bank System: a Sculptural Coral Gene Bank, paired with Sculptural Coral Nurseries, that connect under the surface to regenerate biodiversity, restore reef health, and preserve coral lineage for the island.
The gene bank
Est. May, 2024
Seven, 15-foot modules and 6 fish houses, all constructed from marine-grade stainless steel are submerged 18 feet underwater, and spanning 60 feet across the seafloor. This stunning living art piece nurtures over 370 corals, safeguarding the future of the island and community's coral reefs. The Counting Coral Gene Bank is a distinctive, meticulously crafted sculptural park, tailor-made for Vomo Island and its reefs. Designed and produced in Los Angeles, California, the creation of this park spanned over six months.
The Nurseries
Est. May 2025
A year after installing the Gene Bank, and once the parent corals had securely attached and begun to grow, Counting Coral designed six secondary nursery modules, generously donated by the Hartz family, devoted supporters of Vomo Island and its reefs. Each module can hold up to 700 coral fragments and uses our efficient WPPS wire-prong propagation system, where stainless-steel wire gently secures each fragment. This allows corals to grow closely and safely alongside one another before they’re transferred and planted onto the reef.
2023 — Baseline Assessment
Site survey + full reef health review
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2024 — Gene Bank Installation
Installation of the Sculptural Coral Gene Bank
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2024 — Parent animal / gene Selection
Harvesting of rare, resilient, and “corals of opportunity” to begin testing the parent corals for the
Gene Bank System.
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2024–2025 — Parent Colony attachment
Corals secured to gene bank, cleaned, monitored, stress-tested
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2025 — Nursery Installation
Installation of sculptural nurseries + propagation via our wire prong propagation system WPPS
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2026 — Targeted Out-planting
Replanting the resilient, tested coral fragments to priority reef sites
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2026 Onward — Propagation & Outplanting Cycle
Trimming parent corals from the Gene Bank, seeding secondary nurseries, out-planting mature fragments to priority reef sites, and repeating the process to sustain the cycle of continuous reef rehabilitation.
By 2025, the parent animals within the Gene Bank had reached optimal size and health for fragmentation, making the establishment of the Secondary Nurseries the natural next step in the propagation cycle. These hand-designed, hand-crafted nurseries are purpose-built to support this critical stage of coral propagation. Coral fragments are cut into small, standardized pieces and secured using the Wire Prong Propagation System (WPPS), in which each fragment is wrapped and mounted onto a four-pronged coiled wire structure.This system allows fragments to be positioned closely together, promoting faster growth, inter-colony fusion, and enhanced structural stability. The flexible prongs are designed to move with the natural water currents, reducing mechanical stress and mimicking the dynamic forces corals experience on the reef.
The WPPS design eliminates the need for plastics, concrete, or reactive metals during reef out-planting, ensuring no foreign or harmful materials enter the ecosystem. Once the fragments have matured and are ready for reattachment, the wire is shaped for seamless placement onto the reef, and the prongs can be unwound and reused in subsequent propagation cycles—substantially reducing material use and long-term environmental impact.
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