TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — After a summer of high temperatures that caused widespread bleaching and mortality, corals in the Florida Keys were returned to the in-water nursery.

According to the FWC Fish and Wildlife Research Institute, team members removed threatened staghorn and elkhorn colonies on land to the Keys Marine Lab seawater system after they noticed a shift from their normal coloration to a stark white.

The colonies were moved to cooler waters after surviving the thermal stress back in July when water temperatures were around 40 degrees Fahrenheit warmer.

On Monday, the research institute announced the corals were returned to their nursery, where they will grow and continue to be monitored.

The FWC said coral bleaching happens when water temperatures reach above 87.8 degrees Fahrenheit and have high levels of radiation.

While coral can survive coral bleaching if temperatures quickly return to their normal levels, they are depleted of the algae they feed on, leading to starvation, risk of disease, and death.