Coral ReefsAl-Muthanna Al-Ani and Raffin

Blackadder

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Coral Reefs Around the World

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What are coral reefs?A coral reef is an ocean habitat. It is in warm,

shallow water, about 60-70 meters deep. 4

Coral Reefs are made from an animal called a coral polyp. They are tiny organisms that live in colonies. When they die they leave behind a hard, limestone substance. This is what makes the coral.3

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Types of Coral Reefs Fringing reefs are reefs that are

in the ocean off the coast of land. They grow in shallow water. 3

Barrier reefs grow off shorelines, but farther out. Between the land and these reefs is deep water (a lagoon). They are called barrier reefs because they form a barrier between the lagoon and the ocean. 3

Coral Atolls are rings of coral that grow on top of old, sunken volcanoes in the ocean. They start as fringe reefs around islands made from volcanoes. When the volcano sinks, the reef keeps growing. Finally, the volcano sinks all the way, and all that is left is the reef. 3

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Animals of the Coral Reefs

• Many kinds of sharks• Many kinds of fish• Turtles• Crustaceans• Corals • Many other animals

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Animal Adaptations

The clown fish is adapted to the coral reef because the anemone protects the clown fish. This is a symbiotic relationship. If the clown fish moves it will rapidly adapt to the reef or the home. It will stay in a rock or a coral hole.11

Scorpion fish adapt to the coral reef by camouflage (blending into the background of the coral). 12

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Plants of the Coral Reef and their Adaptations

There are two main kinds of plants in coral reefs: sea grasses and algae. These plants are adapted to live on the coral reef because the reefs are in the shallow parts of the ocean, where they get a lot of sunlight.

Plants are the most important part of the coral reef biome. They have a symbiotic relationship with the coral. Plants provide the food to the coral by photosynthesis.

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Harmful Fishing MethodsHarmful fishing methods are things like bombing

the reef and poisoning fishes in the reef. 5

Not only does it effect the environment by destroying the reef, but also by killing all kinds of reef organisms, not just the type of animal that the fishermen are hunting.5

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Overfishing

Overfishing is when fishermen fish a lot for one certain kind of fish.

Overfishing will effect other fish by, when 1 fish comes off the food chain, this will make other fish not have enough food. It might also make other kinds of fish or plants breed more, unbalancing the ecosystem.6,7

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Overfishing=

Un-

Balanced

Eco-system

Why do we do this?Overfishing Fishing methods

People overfish because it makes lots of money. It is bad because, in the short term, you will get alot of fish. However, in the long term, you will lose the fish in that area for good.

People use harmful fishing methods because it is a way to catch lots of fish fast, and this means fast money. It is bad because it destroys coral reefs and kills animals. In the short term you get fast fish and fast money. In the long term you will lose not only all the fish in the area, but all the other animals that live in the reef, and the coral reef will die too.

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Bibliography 1. http://www.coral-reef-info.com/where-are-coral-reefs-located.html2. http://www.ecotourismblog.com/entry/coral-cay-conservation-takes-the-cake/3. http://www.enchantedlearning.com/biomes/coralreef/coralreef.shtml4. http://science.jrank.org/pages/1788/Coral-Coral-Reef-Environmental-setting-requirements.html5. http://www.underwatertimes.com/news.php?article_id=10109685273 6. http://www.cotf.edu/ete/modules/coralreef/CRanthro.html7. http://sanctuaries.noaa.gov/about/ecosystems/coralimpacts.html8. http://adventure.howstuffworks.com/great-barrier-reef2.htm 9. http://www.123rf.com/photo_5325005_green-sea-turtle-and-coral-reef-maui-hawaii.html 10. http://www.denverzoo.org/animals/clownFish.asp 11. http://animal-world.com/encyclo/marine/clowns/clowns.php 12. http://www.seaworld.org/fun-zone/fun-guides/key-west/coral-reef-camouflage.htm13. http://www.greendiary.com/entry/predator-starfish-wiping-out-the-great-barrier-reefs-corals-dramtically/14. http://www.environmentteam.com/2010/07/27/damselfish-found-to-maintain-algae-gardens-in-marine-habitats/ 15. http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/07/sucking_invasive_algae.php 16. http://www.climateshifts.org/?p=4363 17. http://www.nasaimages.org/luna/servlet/detail/NSVS~3~3~10312~110312:US1-Flyover-of-the-Florida-Keys 18. http://www.talismancoins.com/servlet/Detail?no=683 19. http://images.jsc.nasa.gov/luceneweb/caption.jsp?photoId=STS044-82-057 20. http://www.questgarden.com/53/98/3/070729143012/process.htm 21. http://wpjrnl.com/2010/01/30/purple-plate-coral-eating-krill/ 22. http://www.buzzle.com/articles/coral-reefs-coral-plants-and-animals.html 23. http://www.reefsmagazine.com/showthread.php?t=87800 24. http://www.uvm.edu/~inquiryb/webquest/fa05/srio/ 25. http://news.mongabay.com/2008/0108-hance_coral.html 26. http://blogs.menupages.com/southflorida/2007/09/grouper_sandwiches_disappearin.html 27. http://diveloreto.com/blog_files/archive-oct-2007.html 28. http://www.coral-reef-info.com/coral-reef-algae.html