By: Al, Christian, Larry, & Matt
What’s Coral?
 Coral is an animal that lives underwater.
 There are two types of Coral –
Hard Coral and Soft Coral.
 Coral are invertebrates, as in, they have no spines. (or
any bones for that matter).
 They stick out their
tentacles at night to feed.
Soft Coral
 Soft coral can kinda be seen as the flowers of the
ocean.
 They are soft (obviously) and are usually extremely
colorful.
 These corals however, are not the ones that make up a
coral reef.
Hard Coral
 Unlike the soft coral, hard coral’s are hard on the
outside, with an exoskeleton made out of limestone.
 Hard coral are also fairly colorful.
 It is hundreds of thousands of these coral polyps that
grow upon each other to form a coral reef.
Types of Coral Reefs
 There are 3 different types of Coral
Reefs.
• Fringing
• Barrier
• Atoll
 Fringing is when the reef grows out
of the shoreline.
 Barrier is when the reef grows out of
the continental shelf (the part of the
sand before it drops WAY down).
 Atoll is when the reef is in a circle
enclosing a sunken island, or a
lagoon.
What Good Are Coral Reefs?
 How dare you ask such a question!
 Coral Reefs are one of the most beautiful and
important things in our oceans!
 Not only do they look colorful and fantastic, but
they’re a home to thousands of different species of
animals.
So How Many Animals Live at a
Coral Reef?
 At the Great Barrier Reef alone there are:
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30 species of Whales, Dolphins, and Porpoises
A few Dugongs
Over 200 species of birds
6 species of sea turtles
14 species of sea snakes
1500 species of fish
5000 species of mollusks
400 species of coral
45 species of sea grass
500 species of sea weed
Can Coral Reefs Do Anything Else?
 You bet! Because Coral Reefs are so pretty-full many
places that have them use them as a tourist attraction.
 You can go snorkeling or scuba diving at the coral
reefs!
Works Consulted
 http://www.coral-reef-info.com/types-of-coral-reefs.html
 http://www.starfish.ch/reef/reef.html
 http://library.thinkquest.org/04oct/00042/types_of_coral_
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reefs.htm
http://www.seaworld.org/infobooks/coral/coralcr.html
http://www.coralfilm.com/about.html
http://www.eoearth.org/article/coral_reef
http://www.reef.crc.org.au/discover/plantsanimals/facts_p
lantanimal.htm