Coral Reef
By Enlai Zhang
Coral Reefs
Coral reefs are free swimming coral larvae that attach to submerged rocks or other hard surfaces along edges of islands or continents. As they grow, they take on one of 3 major structures- fringing, barrier, or atoll. They are important because they protect the coastline from waves and storms. They also contain many of the world’s marine species. There are three types of coral reefs- fringing, barrier, and atoll. A coral reef is an invertebrates they have no skeletal structures. They are made up of polyps which are small animals.
Coral reefs are destroyed a lot by humans and their bad ways. Humans destroy coral reefs by pollution, over fishing, and careless tourism. They use destructive fishing practices including cyanide fishing, dynamite fishing, and bottom trawling. Tourists throw trash into the coral reefs, cut them off for souvenir, and pollution. Coral reefs are important because they provide protection from hurricanes and reduce flooding. They are potential for dangerous diseases that are around the world today.
The species that is in the coral reefs around the Caribbean are the pufferfish, spotted scorpion fish, and shiny lobster. The pufferfish survives because of its sharp spines. The shiny lobster have spines that help it survive through the sea. The spotted scorpion fish has venomous spines and are for camo.