Often when Americans head to the beach alongside their swim suits and beach towels they grab their sunscreen. Although sunscreen is major asset to humans for skin it’s also an extreme hindrance to the wildlife. Many sunscreens and or sunblock kill or harm different types of marine animals, especially coral. The main ingredient in sunscreen is Zinc oxide; zinc oxide is one of the main culprits in causing the coral to expel their Zooxantheallae (symbiotic algae that is found in the ocean or with coral and other ocean animals) which is known as coral bleaching. There are many factors to coral bleaching but eliminating (or substituting) zinc oxide will allow the coral population to increase and flourish around the world.

The ocean is one the largest tourist attraction; it attracts millions of visitors every day. Estimated 4 to 6 pounds of chemical wash off of swimmers each year and 10% of coral reefs are destroyed. The sunscreen that Americans are using is leaving a toxic residue of zinc oxide over the marine life, more specifically the coral. Although many researchers search and state that the use of cinnimate, benzophenone, and parabens should be reduced for the main reason that these ingredients are causing a virus in the algae. Only problem is that researchers are over-looking the fact that zinc oxide blocks all sunlight from the surface it’s applied to ; not to mention that it takes months to dissolve fully.

Among the many organisms in the ocean lives a group of jellyfish classified as Cassiopeia Xamachana or commonly known as the Upside-down jellyfish. These jellyfish are named after the very unusual characteristic of lying on the ocean floor with their bell down and their tentacles raised. Just like coral the upside-down jellyfish contains Zooxantheallae within the tentacles as nutrients. The upside-down jellyfish when exposed to stress expels a mucus substance above them that contains nematocysts (that can be removed) to scare away predators; the mucus can also be used to capture prey. Also when exposed to extreme temperatures the jellyfish once again expels the mucus this time the mucus acts as a sunscreen to them. The mucus is completely harmless to the Zooxantheallae within their tentacles
If researchers maybe found a way to incorporate the upside-down jellyfish biodegradable naturally made mucus instead of zinc oxide the coral bleaching epidemic would be reduced by a drastic amount and allow American’s to enjoy the beaches without harming the wildlife .