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- Dictionarycoral reef
noun
- 1. a ridge of rock in the sea formed by the growth and deposit of coral: "the small island is enclosed in the middle of the coral reef"
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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.
Oct 19, 2023 · Learn what coral reefs are, why they are important, and how they are threatened by climate change. Find out how corals live with algae, what causes coral bleaching and acidification, and what we can do to protect them.
Jul 6, 2024 · 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.
Sep 24, 2018 · 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...
Oct 19, 2023 · Coral is an animal that forms reefs with other corals. Reefs are complex and diverse ecosystems that support many marine species and have important benefits for people.
Coral reefs are made up of colonies of hundreds to thousands of tiny individual corals, called polyps. These marine invertebrate animals have hard exoskeletons made of calcium carbonate, and are sessile, meaning permanently fixed in one place.
Sep 5, 2022 · A coral reef is a colony of hundreds of thousands of individual animals called coral polyps. These form when free-swimming coral larvae get attached to rocks or other hard surfaces underwater, mainly along the coastlines of islands and continents.
