Coral Reef Building Organisms And Form The Reef Frame Work Essay

The Great Barrier Reef is one of the seven wonders around the world. It is approximately 344,400 kilometers long. The Great Barrier Reef is home to many marine organisms. More than 1,500 species of fish live in the Great Barrier Reef. The coral that forms The Great Barrier Reef is made of polyps. Billions of living coral polyps are attached to the reef. The colour of these polyps range from blue, green, purple, red and yellow. As the largest living structure on the planet, the Great Barrier Reef is incredibly plentiful and various. Stretching 2300 kilometers, this natural icon is so large it can even be seen from outer space. While it’s known mostly for its large maze of colorful reefs, its intricate architecture also provides a home for a huge number of plants and creatures. There are multiple reasons as why the Great Barrier Reef is important, as it helps protect coastlines from the detrimental effects of waves and storms, provides habitats and protection for many marine organisms, help in nutrient recycling and is the source of nitrogen and other essential foods for marine food chains.

Coral reefs not only protect coastlines and beaches from wave damage and erosion, but also are the basis for the fishing and tourism industries. Dying reefs is a worldwide problem, and evidence shows that 10% of the entire world’s coral has died, and 60% will die by 2020 if existing conditions continue (NOAA 2000). The reason that the Australian Great Barrier Reef is so important is because not only is it the largest barrier reef in the world, but it is also one of the most evolved models of how to best manage and protect the world’s largest reef system (Ornitz 1996). It extends for 2,340 kilometers (km), covers 345,000 square km and contains 2,900 reefs, 300 coral cays and 600 continental islands (White 1999). Historically, it has been ahead of the rest of the world in terms of recognizing and addressing problems associated with reef degradation.

The Coral Reefs are limestone formations that are produced by living organisms. They are found in shallow tropical waters. The predominate organisms that make them up are stony corals, which are colonial cnidarians that secrete calcium carbonate (limestone) as an exoskeleton. Calcium carbonate is also deposited by other types of marine organisms such as tube-building annelid worms but any reef formed by a biological community is called a coral reef. These skeletons accumulate due to the tides and create a formation that supports the living coral as well as the highest species diversity of all explored marine habitats. Reefs are found between the latitudes of 30°N to

Coral reefs are the most biodiverse ecosystem on the planet. There are more than 25,000 known species of organisms and countless others that have yet to be identified (Helvarg, 2000). Reefs thrive on the shallow edge of tropical seas, most often on the eastern edge of continents along warm water currents that brush the coasts. Reefs cannot live in cold waters and are limited by ocean depth and available sunlight. Coral is the foundation of the reef community, providing a three-dimensional structure where thousands of species of vertebrates and invertebrates live and feed. Some species of coral are hard, while others soft. Some are branched, yet others are compact and rounded. Coral is made up of large

First, I am going to talk about the importance of coral reefs. Coral reefs are some of the most diverse and valuable ecosystems on Earth. They are home to 4,000 species of fish, 800 species of hard coral, and hundreds of other species. Scientists believe that there are another 1 to 8 million unidentified species (NOAA). According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, new drugs are being developed from

Located in tropical ocean waters, coral reefs provide priceless resources to both human and marine

While government officials looked the other way, half of the coral has disappeared from along the length of the Great Barrier Reef. Additionally, vast areas of the reef’s coral have suffered serious degradation. It isn’t surprising that the area’s unique level of biodiversity is being threatened by the damage as well.

Some large school of fish can be found looking for food, such as the schoolmasters and the sergeant majors. During the day that is when the coral polyps are the busiest, because the spiny lobsters and long-spined black urchins hide In It. At the night time, that is when they come out to get their own food. Fish that live near the coral polyps are usually very colorful. There are lagoons in between barrier reef and the shoreline. The lagoon has calm water and has sand on the bottom. Lagoons are usually covered in turtle grass and green algae. But enough talking about lagoons. The coral polyps issue is the death of the corals worldwide.

One of the most diverse and biologically rich marine ecosystems is the coral reef. Almost every ecosystem has a greater purpose, coral reef are no exception. For instance they serve as barriers for hurricanes, and other catastrophic storms, their chemicals treat diseases, and one of the most important function is they are a major source of food for humans. But that is just the benefits for humans, they provide shelter and food for numerous organisms, such as fish, turtles, dolphins, and several other marine life.

Coral reefs are natural formations that host around twenty-five percent of the world’s marine species, however, these reefs are majorly threatened (“Air”). The Great Barrier Reef in particular is an important marine location, home to major marine diversity with over 3,000 reefs over 1,400 miles (“Great” World Book). The Great Barrier Reef is a limestone formation made of coral polyps and algae, and lays off the coast of Queensland, Australia. For many years, this reef has been exposed to several threats. The threats facing the Great Barrier Reef include pollution, invasive species, and climate change.

Developing organizations, such as The Ocean Agency and the Coral Restoration Foundation, have been raising concern in efforts to conserve and furthermore sustain aquatic life and the ecosystem in which they inhabit. These unique fish, found living and populating among the coral reef, face a level of degradation and life threatening obstacles. The coral reef acts as a home to more than a quarter of the know fish species, where their population and species have been widely studied. This ecosystem is a beautiful representation of life which supports, and is supported by other neighboring ecosystems; embodying a significance as the leading consumer item for those who live along the reefs. Their importance to our planets collective ecosystem is not fully understood, due to the way these ecosystems are interconnected to one another, but nevertheless illustrates an example of a struggling life which may provide problems for both terrestrial and aquatic life-forms. Aside from the human dependency, being that “More than 450 million people live within 60 kilometers of coral reefs, with the majority directly or

Covering over 348,000 square kilometres, the reef is home to the most comprehensive coral ecosystem on the planet and is so large it can actually be observed from space (Australian government). Whilst predominantly being known for its large colourful reefs, is provides a home to a diverse array of marine creatures including 1625 different species of fish, around 600 types

Coral reefs are located in tropical oceans near the equator. The largest coral reef can be found in Australia, it is called the Great Barrier Reef. the second largest coral reef can be found on the coast of Belize, in Central America. They can also be found in Hawaii, the red sea, and other tropical oceans. Reef-building corals can't tolerate water temperatures below 64 ℉ . many grow, temperatures of 73℉ - 84℉ . they can tolerate temperatures as high as 104℉ for short periods of time.

After the two and half month survey, the data was collected and interpreted by various means: Cluster analysis, Coral Reef Health Index (CRHI) and Distance Population Index (DPI). The coral reef site that had the highest number of a specific indicator organism was to be used as the baseline indicating the healthiest reef. The other sites would be measured of that site and compared for that specific organism. The cluster analysis divided the sites into nine groups of shared characteristics. This allowed Hodgson to determine if reefs of differing natural and anthropogenic factors were

In addition, the research article illustrates how bleaching of the coral reefs is a global issue with findings that imply that all regions in which coral reefs are located are equally affected with the decline of the coral reef in one given area. Likewise, findings in the research article show that coral reef decline is not limited to regional stressors, but also human impacts such as sedimentation as a result of urban development. The main issue discussed in the article is emphasized in the research article, suggesting the urgent need to implement policies to conserve coral reefs. Both articles touch upon the fact that coral reefs can grow back, however in the research articles one finding implies how coral reefs take a noteworthy amount of time to grow and gain its normal composition. Ultimately, the research article does not contradict the news article, but instead compliments the news article and reaffirms the growing issue of coral reef decline as a result of climate events and human