People who don't know corals are often confused by their beautiful appearance. Bright and dazzling colors, bush-like shapes make a lot of them
People think of them as a beautiful plant. In fact, corals are a combination of thousands of polyps and their secretions and fossilized bones, not plants. Different corals have different colors, shapes, etc., which can be described as diverse and colorful.
Classification and habits
Corals can be divided into reef-building corals and non-reef-building corals. Reef-building corals live mainly in sunny tropical shallow waters and prefer to live in groups. During the growth process, the skeleton of the coral continues to expand, and at the same time, the bones of dead corals continue to accumulate, gradually forming coral reefs. Non-reef-building corals are generally monomers, very adaptable, and able to survive in low-temperature, high-pressure deep-sea environments.
Silent predation
Beautiful corals are actually carnivores. In addition to the food provided by symbiotic algae, many plankton, fish and shellfish are also objects of their predation. Corals do not change significantly in form during their predation, and prey will be eaten silently without even knowing who has taken their own life without feeling any sign of their predation. For example, mushroom corals can use their long tentacles and large mouths to swallow jellyfish that are the size of their own.
Close collaboration
In order to survive better, the polyps specially invited some algae friends to live together. Zooxanthellae is a more common "symbiotic partner" in polyps. While photosynthesis to achieve self-nourishment, zooxanthellae also produce organic matter to provide food for polyps. In return, polyps provide shelter and nutrients for zooxanthellae. However, when the environment is harsh, algae such as zooxanthellae will leave the coral "host", and the coral will reveal white bones. This is the "bleaching phenomenon" of corals.
Precious corals
Corals have high artistic and medicinal value. As early as ancient times, some people used coral into medicine. In addition, since the ancient Greek and Roman periods, people have regarded corals as precious ornaments. Their growth cycle is particularly long, even more than that of deep-sea pearls, so they are particularly precious. In addition, the ecological value of corals should not be underestimated. Reef-building corals form coral reefs that provide a paradise for marine life such as fish and shrimp to grow and reproduce. Beautiful coral reefs also protect the coastline. Now, as the marine environment deteriorates, large numbers of corals die one after another. In China, corals have been listed as national second-class protected animals.
Deep Sea "Red Elves"
Deep-sea red corals are considered "treasures of coral" with a lifespan of up to thousands of years. With very little nutrient content, red corals can grow smoothly. Not only that, the vitality of red corals is quite tenacious, even if they are thousands of years old, they can still have children and develop and expand the red coral population.
Coral with the most brothers and sisters
In the warm pacific tropical waters, a type of staghorn coral grows, which is named after its resemblance to antlers. Staghorn corals tend to form large tree-like groups and often live in areas with turbulent currents. Staghorn corals vary in color and are the most brotherly and sister species in the coral family.
Colorful "brain"
Brain corals are also known as "bubble corals", and their shape similar to the texture of a human brain and the mixed skin of multiple colors are impressive. These corals are mainly distributed in the western Pacific, and their irregular circular appearance allows them to withstand the impact of the waves and protect themselves from harm.
"Bubbles" that love sunlight
Bubble corals are a type of stony coral that is mainly distributed in the waters south of Okinawa in the western Pacific Ocean with weak currents. Bubble corals love sunlight because they need plenty of light as they expand and expand. In the sunlight, they look as crystal clear as bubbles. When we are deflated, we can clearly see their skeletons.
Sensitive long-whiskered disc corals
Frisbee coral is a monolithic coral with thick, flattened bones. Their tentacles are relatively large, with a slight swelling at the tip. Frisbee corals have high requirements for water quality and light, and are very sensitive to changes in the living environment. Once the living environment suddenly changes to a certain extent, they face the threat of death.
Beautiful coral reef
After a long period of accumulation, reef-building corals form large coral reefs. In the ocean, coral reefs are a lively bio paradise. The sun is shining, the waters are warm, the nutrients are abundant and there is a wide variety of marine life. The colorful coral reef attracts divers for sightseeing.
The content of this issue is excerpted from Qingdao Publishing House "Marine Life".
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