Coral Reef Restoration Initiative pioneering coral reef cultivation and restoration
Unknown. 2004. Coral Reef Restoration Initiative pioneering coral reef cultivation and restoration. Ocean News and Technology. :16
Coral reefs are created by living organisms called polyps, which are similar to anemones. The hard "shell" of the reef is made from the calcium carbonate that the polyps secrete as they grow that meshes together to form a rigid and wave-resistant structure. The polyps sit on the calcium skeleton as if it were a cup. Reefs develop over thousands of years, encouraged in their growth by zooxanthellae, a kind of algae that lives in the polys' tissues. While corals eat zooplankton (small animals that swim or are carried by water currents), they also get nourishment from the oxygen and energy that the zooxanthelae produce during their photosynthetic "feeding." This classic symbiotic relationship helps promote the corals' calcium carbonate growth. At least seven coral diseases have been documented at the Keys reef tract: black band, yellow band, white band, white plague, white pox, dark spot and aspergillosis (also called sea fan disease). Another problem is coral bleaching, which happens when the zooxanthellae leave the coral polyps they live in because of environmental stressors. Because the zooxanthellae lend their colors to the clear polyps, the polyps are left white, or "bleached." If the stress goes away, the zoxanthellae may return and life on the reef goes on; otherwise, the corals will eventually die.-Mote Marine Lab (www.mote.org)
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Unknown
- Units
- BISC
- Keywords
- Conservation, Coral Reef Restoration Initiative, Coral Reefs, Critical Habitat, cultivated, Ecology, Ecosystems, Habitat, Restoration