Coral reefs

• Coral are tiny animals, They are in the same family as the jellyfish and sea anemone.

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• Some of the coral reefs on the planet today began growing over 50 million years ago.

http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/invertebrates/coral.html

• Reefs get colors from zooxanthellae (ZOH-oh-ZAN-thell-ee) algae they host.

Without zooxanthellae With zooxanthellae

http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/invertebrates/coral.html

• Reefs support about 25 percent of all marine creatures Such as:Angel fishTurtles Parrot fishTrigger fish

• There are two kinds of corals: hard and soft

Hard Coral Soft Coral

• Blast fishing, a method of fishing in pars of the Caribbean, East Africa, and Southeast Asia, uses underwater explosions to damage the swim bladders of fish so that they float to the surface where they are easily captured,and the coral is hurt in the process.

Results of blast fishing

• Coral bleaching is the whitening of coral due to stress. They eventually die.

1. Coral are in the same family as:a) Shellfish and Jellyfishb) Jellyfish and Sea Anemonec) Shellfish and Sea Anemone

2. How many years ago did some of the coral reefs start to grow?d) 50,000 years agoe) 50,000000 years agof) 5000 years ago

Quiz time

• 3. Coral get their color from:a) Zooxanthellaeb) Zooplanktonc) Algae

4. Reefs support about ____ Of all marine lifed) 25%e) 40%f) 10%

5. There are 2 kinds of coral:g) Squishy and softh) Hard and squishyi) Hard and soft

6. _____ _______ is a style of fishing that harms coral in the process of catching fish

a) Blast fishingb) Cyanide fishingc) Muro-Ami

7. Coral bleaching is the whitening of coral due to ________d) Hacking at the corale) Bleach being dumped in to the oceanf) Stress