Coral Reef

 

Gerneral information

Location

• Temperature 64-86 degrees fahrenheit
• Elevation is less than 120 feet.
• Coral reefs are foin in the Carribean Sea, Indian Ocean, Great Barrier Reef, Red Sea, and the South Paific
• The season is hot all the time
• there are two types of coral
• Hard coral- hard limestones  skeleton which forms the basis of coral reef.
• Soft Coral- not build reefs
• there are three types of reefs
  • Fringing reef- reefs that foram across the coastline
  • barrier reefs- grows parallel to shorelines
  • Carol Atolls- rings of coral that grow on top of old, sunken volcanoes in the ocean
• 500 species of seaweed or marine algae live on the Great Barrier Reef
• The algae has been around for over hundrerds of million years
• it can be really tiny or it can be up to 100 feet long
• located along the  coast
• 

• 400 species of coral live on the Great Barrier Reef
• scientists have determined that corals should be classified as animals.
• the corals are able to live because there is a lot of sunlight that gives them the energy that they need
• They also have tentacles that help them catch food tiny marine animals called plankton
• 

 

 

 

Animals

• Food source
  • Jellyfish
    • turtles

 

                    - The plants use photosynthesis to create energy the small fish feed on the plants

                    - The bigger fish start to eat on the smaller fish and it keeps going on

• Hunting habbits
  • jelly fish hunting habbits
  •   move  towards the shore in calm waters when  tide is rising and gather near the mouths of rivers
  • Jellyfish feed on  small fish and crustaceans.

  • Crabs

  • Tiny crabs that live in South Pacific coral help to prevent the coral from dying by providing regular cleaning services that may be critical to the life of coral reefs around the world
  • crabs eat the shrimp
  • crabs reproduce kinda like humans the female get pregnant but they hold their babies for 18 months instead of nine
  • their claws help them cath their food
  • 
  • all the species may be endagered in the coral from global warming
  • enviromentalist try to reduce global warming are helping out
• http://www.coralfilm.com/about.html#about
• http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/ocean/Coralreef.shtml
• http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/10/061023192547.htm