Web Search Results for "coral reef"

Coral reef - Wikipedia
27 Mar 2024 at 5:41pm
A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem characterized by reef-building corals. Reefs are formed of colonies of coral polyps held together by calcium carbonate. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, whose polyps cluster in groups. Coral belongs to the class Anthozoa in the animal phylum Cnidaria, which includes sea anemones and jellyfish.

Coral Reefs - National Geographic Society
27 Mar 2024 at 3:18pm
Reefs provide a large fraction of Earth?s biodiversity ?they have been called ?the rain forests of the seas.? Scientists estimate that 25 percent of all marine species live in and around coral reefs, making them one of the most diverse habitats in the world.

Coral reef | Description, Geochemistry, Origins, & Threats
27 Mar 2024 at 8:40pm
Coral reef, ridge or hummock formed in shallow ocean areas by algae and the calcareous skeletons of coral polyps and other coelenterates. A coral reef may grow into a permanent coral island. Often called ?rainforests of the sea,? coral reefs are home to a spectacular variety of organisms.

Coral reef ecosystems - National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
28 Mar 2024 at 3:14am
marine life. education. Coral reefs are some of the most diverse ecosystems in the world. Coral polyps, the animals primarily responsible for building reefs, can take many forms: large reef building colonies, graceful flowing fans, and even small, solitary organisms.

Basic Information about Coral Reefs | US EPA
26 Mar 2024 at 6:47pm
Coral reefs provide habitat for a large variety of marine life, including various sponges, oysters, clams, crabs, sea stars, sea urchins, and many species of fish. Coral reefs are also linked ecologically to nearby seagrass, mangrove, and mudflat communities.

Coral - National Geographic Society
28 Mar 2024 at 3:21am
Coral reefs are sometimes known as the ?rainforests of the sea.? Nearly a quarter of all the fish in the sea rely on healthy coral reefs. Corals provide habitats for fish and other organisms in the ocean. The Northwest Hawaiian Island coral reefs are home to about seven thousand species of plants and animals.

What Are Coral Reefs? | Live Science
27 Mar 2024 at 1:38pm
Coral reefs are large underwater structures composed of the skeletons of colonial marine invertebrates called coral. The coral species that build reefs are known as hermatypic, or "hard,"...

Reef - National Geographic Society
27 Mar 2024 at 10:03am
Coral reefs are one of the most diverse and delicate ecosystems on the planet. Photograph by Karen Schofield, MyShot. Powered by. Article. Vocabulary. A reef is a ridge of material at or near the surface of the ocean. Reefs can occur naturally. Natural reefs are made of rocks or the skeletons of small animals called corals.

Coral Reefs and Corals | Smithsonian Ocean
28 Mar 2024 at 3:14am
Coral reefs are the most diverse of all marine ecosystems. They teem with life, with perhaps one-quarter of all ocean species depending on reefs for food and shelter. This is a remarkable statistic when you consider that reefs cover just a tiny fraction (less than one percent) of the earth?s surface and less than two percent of the ocean bottom.

Coral Reefs 101 | National Geographic - YouTube
27 Mar 2024 at 2:10am
What are coral reefs? Coral can be found in tropical ocean waters around the world. But how much do you know about reefs and the tiny animals?polyps?that build them? Learn all about coral...



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