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The Coral Reef

The Forgotten
Ecology
of The Earth

What Is a Coral Reef?

A structure formed by coral polyps, tiny animals
that live in colonies.

Coral polyps form a hard, stony, branching

structure made of limestone.

New polyps attach to old coral and gradually

build the reef.
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A World of Coral Reefs

= Coral Reef

Coral Reef Climate

Usually found near land in shallow, warm salt

water

Lots of light

Tropical temperatures, averaging 20°-26.5° C

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Sample Food Chain

Starfish
Coral
Octopus

Zooplankton

Moray Eel
Phytoplankton

The Importance of Coral Reefs

Habitat for 1/3 of marine fishes

Habitat for tens of thousands other sea animals
The rainforests of the oceans
Protection to Coastline
Biodiversity
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The Importance of Coral Reefs

PROTECTION TO COASTLINES
absorb energy of ocean waves
reduce erosion of shoreline
storm damage
flooding

The Importance of Coral Reefs

BIODIVERSITY
The rainforests of the sea
Genetic diversity
Pharmaceuticals
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Endangered Coral Reefs

Major threats to coral reefs include:

Ocean pollution
Blast fishing
Cyanide fishing
Global warming

Blast Fishing
This involves the use of a bomb set to explode under water in a coral reef
ecosystem
When the bomb detonates, it kills or stuns the majority of fish within its
radius and the dead or stunned fish float to the surface, were they can be
easily caught
Commonly used in over 30 countries and has
caused major damage and loss of Coral Reef
Ecosystems, including over 50% of reefs in
Southeast Asia
Shatters the reef structure
It takes an estimated 100 – 106 years of
recovery
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Cyanide Fishing

Poisoning fish until they become

stunned and therefore easy to catch

Crushing sodium cyanide, mixing the

substance with salt water and storing
it in bottles where it can later be
brought underwater to reefs and
squired into reef fish’s habitat

Sodium Cyanide is poison to coral

polyps, resulting in coral bleaching

Global Warming
Coral reefs are very sensitive to changes in the ocean’s
temperature
Te,p. change of only a few degrees above the long-term
average can cause coral to die
Increasing ocean CO2 concentration
Since early 1900s, pH drop by 0.1 units, estimate a drop
in seawater pH by 0.5 units by 2100
CO2 reacts with water to form carbonic acid (H2CO3)
Over 60% of the earth’s coral reefs will be lost by the next
25 years
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Data & Facts

More than 80% of the world's shallow

reefs are severely over-fished
Occupying less than one quarter of
1% of the marine environment, coral
reefs are home to more than 25% of
all known marine fish species
58% of the world's coral reefs are
potentially threatened by human
activity

Data & Facts

Coral reefs are found in 109 countries; significant reef

degradation has occurred in 93
Southeast Asia is considered the global epicentre of
marine diversity. Its 100,000km2 of coral reefs (34% of
the world's total) are home to over 600 of the 800 reef-
building coral species in the world
Indonesia and the Philippines hold 77% of Southeat
Asia's coral reefs and nearly 80% of threatened reefs
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Data & Facts

We have already lost 27% of the world's coral reefs. If

present rates of destruction are allowed to continue, 60%
of the world's coral reefs will be destroyed over the next
30 years
More than 450 million people live within 60 kilometres
of coral reefs, with the majority directly or indirectly
deriving food and income from them