What is a Coral Reef?
Coral reefs are one of the most diverse ecosystems in the world. They are homes to tens of thousands of marine species like,
sea turtles, fish, mollusks, sponges, algae, and more.
Tiny simple organisms called polyps actually form
the structure of a coral reef. These polyps secrete a calcium carbonate exoskeleton. Thousands of polyps live together to create coral colonies. Over long periods of time, the skeletons of many coral colonies add up to build the structure of a coral reef.
To eat, the polyps extend their tentacles at night to sting and ingest tiny organisms like plankton and other small creatures
By: Caroline Aubrey
ingest tiny organisms like plankton and other small creatures to get the nutrients they need. Corals also need sunlight for the algae that lives in its tissue. Clean water is also necessary because of how sensitive corals are to pollutants.