Have you seen pictures of colourful coral beds under the sea? Some coral reefs are tourist attractions as visitors can go scuba diving there, and enjoy the biodiversity under water.
Coral polyps are hard working little animals, no bigger than a match’s head, which together, build enormous coral reefs. They are invertebrates that live in colonies. Since they are small, and stay in one place, they are in danger of being attacked by larger animals.
So, they construct hard chalky skeletons around their bodies. It is these skeletons that form the frame work of coral reefs. Corals are attached to the sea floor. Even through corals look like plants, they are animals. They stay in one place and live in groups.
Coral reefs may look like rocks. They are made up of tiny little animals called polyps. As polyps die, they become hard and new polyps grow on top of them. This process continues until a colony is formed.
As colonies grow over hundreds and thousands of years, they join with other colonies and become reefs. Some of the coral reefs on the planet today began growing over 50 million years ago. Corals live in tropical waters throughout the world.
The largest coral reef is the Great Barrier Reef located off Queensland, Australia. The Great Barrier Reef stretches for 2600 kilometres.
Coral reefs teem with life. Though they cover less than one percent of the ocean floor, they support 25 percent of all marine creatures. Coral reels are very important because they are home to some of the most strange and interesting creatures on this planet.
Picture credit: google