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What is Coral?
marine colonial polyp characterized by a calcareous skeleton
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Highest species richness of coral reefs
Indo Pacific - 500 species of coral
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Highest endemism in coral reefs
hawaii
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Zooxanthellae and symbiotic relationship with coral
- -yellow and brown algae
- -has a symbiotic relationship with coral.
- 1. Coral Polyp
- -Provide Nitrogen and Carbon Dioxide
- -protection
- 2. Zooxanthellae
- -provides oxygen
- -nutrients
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Phylum Cnidaria
- -Jellyfish, sea anemone, corals
- -stinging cells called nematocysts
- -radially symmetric
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Difference between Hard and soft corals
- 1.Hard corals
- -6 tentacles
- -out at night
- 2. Soft corals
- -8 tentacles
- -out during day
- -like fans
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ID: Acropora
 - -deer thorns
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ID: Fungia
- -mushrooms
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ID: Platygyra
- -Brain coral
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ID: Favia
- -circular polyps
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ID: Turbinaria
- -turban like
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ID: Millepora
- -fire/ yellow coral
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ID: Subergorgia
- -fan like
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Coral importance
- -buffers to land
- -food and subsistence,
- -Tourism
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What proportion of coral has been destroyed and degraded?
- -1/10 destroyed
- -1/3 degraded.
- -¾ degraded in 50 years
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What is the aesthetic value of coral?
$375 billion annually
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Three things that are damaging coral
- 1. Coral bleaching due to temperature increases
- 2. man-made causes from forestry,
- 3. dynamite and cyanide fishing
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Flora
- -75% biomass plants,
- -single cell plant
- -brown algae, green algae, coralline, halimeda, penicullus
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Algae
primitive plants with no true leaves, stems, or roots.
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Green Algae
- -contributes calcium carbonate
- 1. halimedal
- - most of what makes white sand
- 2. udotea
- - indicator of pollution, signifies polluted
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ID: Halimeda
- -green algae
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What are seagrasses?
Land plants that have recolonized in the ocean.
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Why are seagrasses important?
- 1. Stabilizing the sea bottom
- 2.Providing food and habitat for other marine organisms
- 3. Maintaining water quality
- 4. Supporting local economies
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