1. Coral Reefs

2. Types of Coral Reefs Fringing Reef- directly attached to shore
Barrier Reef- separated from mainland by lagoon
Atoll Reef- extends all around a lagoon without a central island

3. Reefs Are a Major Type of Coast in Tropical Areas
7. Reefs are important coastlines in tropical regions

4. Biotic vs. Abiotic Biotic – Anything Living in an Ecosystem
Abiotic – Anything Not-Living
Are these Biotic or Abiotic?
Water…..Fish….Salinty….Sun…Coral….?

5. Outline Coral biology Value of coral reefs
Land-based pollution impacts
Management actions

6. Coral is as an animal
Source: NOAA

7. Coral Needs:
Warm water: 75 – 85 F
Sun Light: Shallow and Clear

8. Coral reef distribution

9. Examples
The Great Barrier Reef- Queensland, Australia; the largest coral reef system
The Belize Barrier Reef- along the coast of Belize down to the Bay Islands of Honduras; second largest coral reef system
The Red Sea Coral Reef- coast of Egypt and Saudi Arabia
Pulley Ridge- Florida; deepest photosynthetic coral reef
The New Caledonia Barrier Reef- length of about 1500km
The Great Barrier Reef is on the northeastern coat of Australia.
The Belize Barrier Reef

10. Outline Coral biology Value of coral reefs
Known effects of land-based pollution
Management actions

11. Value of Coral Biodiversity Fisheries Shoreline protection
Pharmaceuticals
Tourism
Education
Culture
Social values

12. Coral reefs: rainforests of the sea
How many species of fish live on reefs? 40
400
4000
PCS

13. Importance of Biodiversity
Affects cycles (carbon, nitrogen, etc).
Impact on Food Webs
Unknown Medicines/Economic Value
Beauty/Aesthetic Value

14. Coral reefs protect the shore-line

15. Reefs are important economically
Hawaii:
Net benefits = $360 million year
Overall asset value MHI = $10 billion

16. Threats to Coral Reefs Key threats to US reefs: Over-fishing
Land-based sources of pollution
Recreational overuse/misuse
Lack of public awareness
Climate change & coral bleaching
Disease

17. Outline Coral biology Value of coral reefs
Land-based pollution impacts
Management actions

18. Land and sea are connected

20. Many sources of land-based pollution.

21. Runoff threatens coral reefs globally
22% are affected
USGS

22. Runoff impacts growth & survival of hard coral colonies
Bill Walsh DAR

23. Sediments reduce light and decrease coral growth

24. Sediments smother coral

25. Runoff affects coral
reproduction

26. Pollution

27. Power Plants

28. Threats from Nature Hurricanes Water temperature changes
Dramatic changes in saltiness of water
Predators, such as snails and crown of thorns starfish
Overgrowth of algae

29. Coral-eating Snails

30. Crown of Thorns Starfish

31. More Destruction Fish Trade- over-fishing
* Use of cyanide to capture fish
Dynamite Fishing- not only kills fish, but also coral
Coral Bleaching- caused by global warming- the high temperatures kills the zooxanthellae that provide the coral with nutrients
Ocean Acidification- the decrease in the ocean’s surface pH level, increases the amount of CO2 dissolved in the oceans
African and Asia dust outbreaks- the dust that blows into the oceans declines the health of the coral reefs

32. More Threats from Humans
Deforestation
Causes erosion which clouds the water
Burning of trees could be a factor in climate change
Destructive fishing
Boats running aground, anchors
Overfishing

33. Dynamiting Reef

34. Destructive Resource Extraction Practices

35. Toxic Chemical Spills

36. Sediment Plume Entering the Ocean

37. Corals Smothered in Sediment

38. Dredging

39. Coastal Development

40. Anchor Damage

41. Diver Damage

42. Ecotourism
Pennekamp Reef, Key Largo, FL

43. Net Damage

44. Net Entanglement
                   
                                                                                                

45. Overfishing and Bycatch

46. Ornamental Trade:
Fan worm
Threadfin Butterfly fish

47. Bleaching

48. Global Bleaching
none
low
moderate
severe
severity
unknown

49. Acid Rain in Marine Environment
reduces ability of marine organisms to utilize calcium carbonate
Coral calcification rate reduced %
Skeletal density decreased, branches thinner

50. Outline Coral biology Value of coral reefs
Land-based pollution impacts
Management actions

51. Solutions
Reduce pollutants
Increase public awareness
Monitor levels

52. Thank you

53. Review Questions What does the coral need to survive?
Why is Biodiversity Important?
What are the causes of coral reef destruction….we will keep going until we run out of reasons….
What are some solutions?