The Coral Reef
-The Rainforest of the Sea-
Location
• Found in shallow seas between the latitudes 30° N
and 30° S—the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn.
• In the same zones as the tropical rainforests, just in
the water
Abiotic Features
• Cannot survive in
water with a surface
temperature lower
than 20° C
• Cannot survive where
the salinity of the
water is outside the
ordinary range of sea
water
• Restricted to fairly
clear water
• Restricted to depths,
depending of clarity,
of 10- 60 m deep
The Food Web
Examples of:
• Producers
– Phytoplankton, algae, detritus, zooxanthellae
• Primary consumers
– Zooplankton, coral shrimp, damsel fish, clams, crustaceans,
sea turtles
• Secondary consumers
– Corals, barracuda, sea urchins, octopus, reef sharks
Interspecies
Relationships
• Polyps and
Zooxanthellae
• Anemones and
Clownfish
• Cleaning Wrasses and
larger fish
Coral and Fish
Sea Turtles, Sharks
and Rays
Environmental
Threats
• Bleaching
• Over fishing
• Aquarium industry
• Divers—Tourists
• Water Pollution
Ecological
Advantages
• Protects coastline from
•
•
•
•
natural disasters
Protects marshes, lagoons,
mangrove forests and other
shore habitats
Reduces coastal erosion
Fights against global
warming
Plant and animal poisons
used in medicine
Bibliography
• Allaby, Michael. Oceans. 1999: Grolier
Educational, Danbury. 40-43.
• Lampton, Christopher. Coral Reefs in
Danger. 1992: Millbrook Press,
Brookfield.
• Sayre, April Pulley. Coral Reef. 1996:
Twenty-First Century Books, New
York.
• Stafford-Deitsch, Jeremy. Reef. 1991:
Sierra Club Books, San Francisco.