Coral
Coral reefs are home to
billions of sea plants and
animals. They are truly
amazing places and are among
the oldest ecosystems in the
world. Colonies of tiny
coral animals known as
polyps live on the reef
along side sea anemones,
fish and much more!
Coral
Soft bodied corals grow hard
cases in order to protect
themselves, in time the case
turns into stone as the
coral polyp grows inside.
As
new polyp grow they build on
top of each other, thus
forming the reef. The polyps
cannot move around the reef
but use their tentacles to
search for food.
Coral
polyps are part of the same
family as Jellyfish and they
reproduce in two ways! An
egg can grow into a planula
(A young polyp is known as a
planula) or an adult can
produce a bud which grows
into a direct copy of
itself! |