CORAL REEF COMMUNITY
Reported by :Balansag Maybel A
Bsbio II
Classification Review
Phylum Cnidaria (Coelenterata)
Class
Anthozoa (Corals)
Hydrozoa (hydroids)
Scyphozoa(Jellyfish)
Subclass
Rugosa(Extinct)
Tuballata(Extinct)
Scleractina(Reef building
Class Anthozoa
Ex. Sea anemone
soft bodied polyp
Found in coastal areas
Feed on fish and other marine life
Highly muscular and complex
Asexual –pulling apart
Ex. Corals
Colonies called reef
Secrete calcium carbonate skeleton that cements to skeleton of the
neighbours
Top living polyps bottom layer are old skeletons
CORAL REEFS
• Corals are composed of thin plates or layers , of calcium carbonate
secreted over time by hundreds of soft bodied animals called polyps
• Colonies called reef
• Are wave –resistant piles of limestone and calcareous sediments built by a
thin veneer of living organism(Hubbard ,1997)
• Coral Reefs are made up not only of hard and soft corals but also
sponges, crustaceans, molluscs, fish , sea turtles, sharks, dolphins,
CORAL REEFS
Rainforest of the sea
Most diverse ecosystem in the world
25% of ocean fish depend on healthy coral reefs
Live in shallow water
Reefs cover about 100,000 square miles of the worlds shallow
water
live in very nutrient poor waters and have certain zones of tolerance
to water temperature, salinity, UV radiation, opacity, and nutrient
quantities
Symbiotic relationship with photosynthetic algae –zooxanthallae
Anatomy of Coral
Each polyp looks like
a tiny sea anemone
Ring of stinging
tentacles around a
central mouth
Rest in a cup on the
surface of the colony
How do corals get their color?
• are
made up of polyps , small, colorless animals that
have a sac-like body with a mouth-like opening and a
crown of stinging tentacles
• reefs
get their color from the tiny creatures living inside
the polyps: algae called zooxanthellae.
Hermatypic corals:
• possess zooxanthellae
• are reef builders
Light: Clear water
Warm temperature: 18-32oC
Low nutrients
Low productivity in water
Ahermatypic corals:
• no zooxanthellae
• rely on tentacular feeding
• can live in aphotic zone
BENEFITS OF CORALS
• Protect coastlines from storms ad erosion, waves absorber
• Home for some marine species, source of food
• Tourism
Location of Reefs
• Found between 30°north and 30°south
• Reason:coral reefs do not thrive in areas where the surface temperature
is below 70°F
• Two areas of coral reefs
Continental
Oceanic
Indian
Pacific
mainly in shallow, warm
water near the equator
around continental shelves
around islands
top of seamounts
Types of coral Reef Formation
Fringing Reef
Grow near the coastline around the Island and continents
Known as shore reefs
They are separated from the shore by narrow , shallow
lagoons
Types of coral Reef Formation
• Barrier Reef
• Are extensive linear reef complexes that parallel shore , and are separated from
it by lagoon
• Eg.Great Barrier reef
Types of coral Reef Formation
Atolls
Are rings of coral that create protected lagoons and are usually
located in the middle of the sea.
Form when Islands surrounded by frin9ng reefs sinks into the
sea or the sea level rises around them these island are often the
tops of underwater volcanoes.
Types of coral Reef Formation
• Patch Reef
CORAL REEF IDENTIFICATION
Hard coral /Scleratinians
Made of rigid calcium carbonate (limestone )and appear
very much like rocks.
Types:
Staghorn
Pillar
table
Brain
Blue
Staghorn Coral
Acropora cervicornis
is a branching coral with cylindrical
branches ranging from a few cm to over
6.5ft (2m) in length
Fastest growth of all known western
Atlantic corals, with branches increasing
in length by 4-8 inches(10-20 cm ) per
year and is one the three most important
Caribbean corals to reef growth and fish
habitat .
Pillar Coral
Dendrogyra cylindricus
grows up from the sea floor , but
without any secondary branching
Grow to be up to 2.5 m (8ft tall)
Can grown on both flat and sloping
sae floors at a de3pth of between 1
and 20 m (65ft)
One of the few hard types of coral
whose polyps can commonly be seen
feeding during the day.
Table coral
Acroropra
branching type of coral, but grown in
flat plates
Shape of the table coral is deal to
expose as much as of their surface as
possible of sunlight
Usual colour of the table is a dull brown
or green , but it is brightened up by the
numerous reef fishes that shelter under
and around its plates
Brain Coral
Family faviidae
spheroid shape and grooved
surface which resemble an animal
brain.
Life span of the largest brain coral
is 900 years .
Colonies can grow as large as 6 or
more feet (1.8m)
Blue Coral
Heliopora coeerulea
permanently blue skeleton ,
which generally hidden by
greenish –grey or blue polyps.
Occur in tropical waters , on
intertidal reef flats and upper reef
slopes.
Great star coral
Montastraea cavernosa
Colonial stony coral
Forms into massive builders
and sometimes develops into
plats .
Its polyps are the size of a
persons thumb and can be
seen fully extend at night
Tube coral
Tubastreaa
is a large polyp stony coral and is
found in variety of colours and
forms depending upon species.
Tubastraea faulkneri is known as
the orange cup or sun coral
Elkhorn Coral
Acropora palmata
most important reef building corals
Structurally complex with many large
branches , coral structures closely resembles
that of elk antlers
A popular choice as a home for lobsters, parrot
fish , snappers , and other reef fish
They are incredibly fast growing with an
average growth rate of 5 to 10 cm (2.0-3.9 )per
year and can eventually grow up to 3.7 m (12
ft. in diameter
Soft coral
Composed of some rigid calcium carbonate , but it is blended with
protein so it is less rigid than hard corals
They are rooted , but without exoskeleton , they sways back and forth
with the currents appear to be more like plants blowing in the breeze.
Types
Gregorian
Carnation
Toadstool
Tree
Sea pens
Bubble
Gregorian/sea fan /sea whip
Individual tiny polyps forms colonies that are
normally erect, flattened , branching and reminiscent
od a fan
Colony can be several feet high and across but only a
few inches thick
They maybe brightly coloured often purple , red or
yellow
Found in shallow water and some in several thousands
feet
Sizes shape , and appearance are highly correlated
with their location
More fan shaped to populate shallower areas with
strong currents , while the taller , thinner , and stiffer
can be fou8nd in deeper calmer waters.
Carnation Coral
Dendronephythya
one of the most beautiful soft corals
They flourish below and under hangs and caves
Found mostly in Indo-pacific –Island of the
indo-pacific including Fiji, Tonga , Solomon
Island and the great Barrier reef
They are extremely sensitive to changes in
water chemistry and is on the decline.
Toadstool Coral/Leather, Mushroom
Leather , trough coral Sacrophyton corals
Sacrophyton
found in various shades of brown ,
with white or gold polyps
It is difficult to identify many species
because they all have similar appearance
of a mushroom or a toadstool , each with
a distinct stalk and capitulum (cap). As
they grow older , they develop a folded
appearance.
Tree Coral
Family -Nephtheidae
Common in many shores
Attached to hard surfaces including
boulders , jetty pilings and coral rubble
Tissue is rubbery but rough to the touch
A thick` main trunk ` attaches to a hard
surface on one end which is why they are
referred as tree coral
Sea pen coral
Cnidarians belonging to the order
Pennatulacea
Grouped with the octocorals (Soft corals )
Named fro their feather like appearance
reminiscent of antique quill pens
Rise up to 2m(6.6ftt) in some species , such
as tall sea pen (Funiculina
quadrangularis).They prefer deeper waters
where turbulence is less likely to uproot
them
Bubble coral/Grape /Pearl /B;adder
Coral
Plergya sinuosa
they have large wate5r filled bubble
(vesicles)covering the charge sharp
sepia.
Found in pacific ocean and parts of the
Red sea
Maintain their egg like or rather grape
like appearance during the sunlit hours ,
then deflate at dark, manifesting finger-
tentacles that feed on plankton
