coral biology and anatomy
This phylum of invertebrates includes corals, jellyfish, and sea anemones.
What is Cnidaria?
These types of reeds grow close to the shoreline, forming a border along continents and islands.
What are fringing reefs?
The primary cause of coral bleaching, related to climate change.
What is increased ocean temperature/thermal stress?
This type of protected area is established to conserve marine ecosystems, often including coral reefs.
What is a Marine Protected Area (MPA)?
This is the largest coral reef system in the world.
What is the Great Barrier Reef?
This is the individual animal that makes up a coral colony.
What is a polyp?
This is a special type of reef that is ring-shaped and surrounds a lagoon, forming a giant circle.
What is an atoll?
This process, where the ocean absorbs excess carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, leads to a decrease in seawater pH.
What is ocean acidification?
The practice of growing corals in nurseries and then transplanting them back onto degraded reefs is known as this.
What is coral restoration/coral gardening?
There are many reefs found in this region near the United States.
What is the Caribbean?
This is the symbiotic algae that lives in coral and gives them energy using photosynthesis.
What is zooxanthellae?
These animals are the apex predators on the reef, with big teeth.
What is a shark?
Runoff from agricultural lands, containing excess nutrients, can lead to overgrowth of these organisms, outcompeting corals.
What are algae/seaweeds?
Reducing human activities that release greenhouse gases into the atmosphere is crucial for mitigating this major threat to reefs.
What is climate change?
This ocean has the most atolls in the world.
What is the pacific?
The hard skeleton of most corals is made of this material.
What is calcium carbonate?
This term describes the incredibly high number of different species found within a reef.
What is biodiversity?
Destructive fishing practices, such as using explosives or cyanide, fall under this general category of threats.
What are overfishing/destructive fishing practices?
One thing that can be cut down on to help protect reefs from coral bleaching.
What is sunscreen?
This region is home to the most reefs in the world.
What is the indo-pacific ocean?
This process, where corals expel their zooxanthellae due to stress, is a major indicator of poor reef health.
What is coral bleaching?
Name one type of primary producer commonly found in coral reef ecosystems. (Not zooxanthellae)
What is seaweed/algae/phytoplankton?
Name one invasive species that poses a threat to coral reefs in Florida.
What is a lionfish?
one thing that fisherman can do to help protect the reefs.
What is removal of invasive species?
The Great Barrier Reef has this many different species.
What is tens of thousands?