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Introduction:

Chapter One: What is a Coral Reef?

Chapter Two: Where do Reefs Exist?

Chapter Three: How do Coral Reefs Create an Underwater Ecosystem?

Chapter Four: How are Coral Reefs Important for the Human Species and Marine Life?

Chapter Five: In What Ways are Coral Reefs at Risk and how can YOU help? Glossary

Culminating Questions

Culminating Activity

References

In this book you will learn about the Coral Reef, where it exists, the structure, the underwater ecosystem, the importance to the human species and marine life, and last but not least you will learn how to help Coral Reefs at RISK!

Compelling question: How are coral reefs an underwater ecosystem?

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Acrostic Poem:Colorful underwater animalOcean blue waterReefs are endangeredAustralia is home to the largest barrier reefLarge coral structuresReefs made from skeletonsEggs released into the seaEels and starfish live in the coralFishes that are small hide within

How it becomes a Coral Reef

The Coral Reef starts with one small Polyp. The easiest way to say it is like this POL-up or Poll-ups. They live in water close to land, that is shallow and warm. The coral polyp grows on the bottom of the seafloor. Did you know there are MANY kinds of Coral polyps? Well in fact there are! Imagine the size of your fingernail and that is how small a coral polyp actually is. They are a stationary animal meaning that they have no legs, arms or tails. They cannot move around at all. But this does not mean that tiny ocean animals are safe from the coral Polyps mouth, that looks like a tube.

Learning Target:Students will be able to describe the coral reefs.

Under the water, many feet down below the ocean lives the Coral Reef. The coral reef comes in many different shapes and sizes. The coral is actually an animal, not a rock. They are described as a hard structures in the ocean, but they are beautiful creatures under the sea!

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Shape and Size of the Coral Reef

In order for the Coral Polyp to become the size and shape that it becomes. It has to take time to get there. The polyp do not have babies but what does happen is new polyps grow on full grown ones. The first polyp attaches itself to a rock, and then waits for others to join it. Big groups of Polyps are called colonies! These colonies have a very long life span and can live for hundreds of years. Many of the coral colonies can look like a tree with many branches on it.

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Just like the colonies that grow to look like trees. Many come to look like shelves, feathers and even brains.

When coral polyps die, their bodies stay in place. In the end they become hard as rocks, allowing more polyps to grow on top of them.

The coral polyps shape into a huge coral reef with many years of growing. A lot of animals grow up inside the coral reefs. Many COLORFUL fish, sharks, Eels, starfish, crabs and snails call the coral reef its home.

Did you know that fish are not safe in the ocean? Fish end up hiding in caves, holes, and Coral Reefs. The small fish in the ocean like to use the coral reef as a hiding place to survive from big fish or Sharks.

FUN FACT: Coral Reefs can help make islands!

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As you know from the previous page, the Coral reefs comes in many shapes and sizes. Another example of this is the Staghorn Coral which can look like deer Antlers. While the Mushroom Coral can look like underside of a mushroom. The Finger coral can look like fingers pointing at people while they swim near them. Other forms are cabbage Coral, that looks like Cabbage. Cactus coral that is pointy and looks like the Cactus plant. The one that most people would consider the best one is the Brain Coral Reef because YES, it looks like a persons Brain! Your probably wondering when is the best time to visit the Coral Reefs. The answer is Day Time, because all the Coral Reefs will be out and it’s a beautiful Scene to admire, with all the little fish swimming around.

Video: Out on the Coral Reef

Guiding Questions:1.Is the coral reef an Animal or a plant? Explain.2. Does it come in different shapes and Sizes? 3. Describe two Coral Reef structures. 4. Write a haiku poem about what you have learned in this chapter.

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Where do Coral Reefs exist? Like you read Australia is one of the most known places because of how long it stretches. They also exist on many places that are on islands. On the map you see that all the Coral Reefs are in pink. Some people travel all around the world just to view the coral reefs. Of course unlike fish, we can not breath underwater. So if you visit these places you’ll need a face mask, snorkel and flippers.

One of the smaller reefs is the Caribbean Reefs, that only stretches 140 miles long. While it is a small distance, it has over 200 coral reefs with close to 600 types of fish roaming its corals. The Caribbean Reefs form close to 10 percent of the worlds coral reefs.

Some reefs grow like lacy fringes that grow along many miles of the shore. Other Reefs, called Atolls grow in a ring around large lagoons. Reefs are very important to the ocean like the rain forests are to the land. The Reefs protect the shore from the Storms. Sometimes Coral reefs are crushed by huge storms called Hurricanes from June to November every year.

The Largest Reef is off the coast of Australia, Known as the Great Barrier Reef! The Great Barrier reef stretches for over 1,250 miles. It is along the northeast shore of Australia with almost 3,000 separate reefs. Most of the Coral is less than 10,000 years old.

Learning Target:Students will be to select where the Coral Reefs exist and why that is?

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Reefs of the WorldThey have certain areas that they can live based on the water temperature. Corals grow mostly grow near the tropics. The water is warm, shallow and clear. While most coral reefs need warm water to survive there are some that grow in cold water. These areas would be near the shore of the Atlantic Ocean in the USA and Europe.

The names of Coral reefs:Caribbean ReefsWest Atlantic Seaboard reefs North Atlantic cold-water reefsMid Atlantic reefsGulf reefsIndian ocean reefsMaldives reefsSunda reefs South China Sea reefsCelebes ReefsGreat Barrier ReefCoral Sea ReefsPacific Island ReefsNew Zealand Cold-water reefs

Fun Fact: Did you know Astronauts can see the Great Barrier Reef from Space!?!

The Coral Reef grows in warm salty water and most coral reefs are found near the equator in shallow water. The reason for this is that coral reefs need plenty of sunlight to grow. Deep water is too dark and cold for most forms of coral.

Fun Fact: The Coral reef has existed since the time of the Dinosaurs!

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The Basal Plate: Base of the plant

Digestive Filament: Help the Polyp to digest what food it takes in

Theca: Is the covering of the coral reef

Mesoglea: is the translucen, non-living jelly like substance found between two cell layers

Coenosarc: The tissue that connects the polyp to the hybrid community

Outer ectodermis:It’s the outer layer of the embryo

Gastrodermis: Inner cell layer

Nemtocyst: the polyp contains a trigger and venomous barb

Septum: the wall of tissue

Mouth: Uses it mouth to eat animals in the water

Stomach: The plants stomach

Tentacle: is a flexible, mobile organ that helps the coral catch food

What does the coral Reef Structure look like?

The coral Reef Structure Continued

Did you know for a long time Coral Reefs were called rock-plants or plant-animals? But we now know their true name Coral Polyps.

The Coral Polyp buds and divides again and again evolving into a large colony of thousands of mouths linked to another. Within a hundred years a coral colony may grow just a few feet.

Guiding Chapter Questions1. Select two Coral Reef location and describe them.2. What type of water do coral reefs Exist?3. Describe 3 parts to the coral reefs that help them exist. 4. TRY THIS: How does sunlight affect coral reefs?Here’s what you’ll need:SeedsA lampPotting soil2 small flowerpots or empty film canistersA lampA table 2 or 3 booksA plastic bag big enough to fit around the books A shoe boxPlant seeds in two separate little pots. Film canisters with good soil and a little water works greatPlace the plants under a light. Prop one up with books, on top of a table, so that it gets very close to the light. (If you put the books in a plastic bag, they won’t get wet.) Put the other one on the floor on a shoebox, so that it’s less likely to get kicked. Water them now and then

Watch them grow for a week or two.

Learning Target: Students will be able to break down the coral reef food chain.

Coral Reefs are home to thousands of plants and animals. Different parts of the reef have different types of animals and all of these animals interact in a complex web of relationships.Many of these relationships are between predator and prey.

To examine this relationship we will start with the coral. Corals eat plankton which are tiny organisms that float through out the water. The polyps use their tentacles to catch the plankton so they can eat it. Corals aren't only predators, but also prey. Coral polyps retreat into their skeleton for protection but parrot fish use their special beaks to break though the coral skeletons and eat the polyps inside. The parrot fish are preyed on by larger fish like groupers and sharks. This is an example of one food chain that exists on the coral reef but there are many many more that create the large food web of the coral reef.

Many species have developed unusual adaptations that help them survive in the reefs.

For example the scorpion fish barely resembles a fish because it bends in with the coral around it. Predators need to be careful because on its back are spines filled with painful venom.

The frogfish can change color to blend in with its surroundings and dangles a special fin in front of its mouth to lure its prey.

Sometimes different species work together to help each other survive. The large tiger groupers have a partnership with tiny fish called neon gobies. The gobies swim all over the grouper cleaning them by picking parasites and dead skin off of their scales, gills, and fins. The gobies even swim inside the groupers mouth to clean the groupers teeth. This arrangement works out well because the gobies get a free meal and the grouper gets a cleaning.

Did you know that octopuses live in coral reefs? An octopus is a master of disguise because it can change the color and texture of its skin to blend in with the environment. If a predator happens to find it, the octopus releases a cloud of ink that confuses the enemy.

Guiding Questions:1.Select one example of a predator in the coral reef and what it preys on. 2.Why do you think it is important for animals to adapt to their surroundings?3.Write a list poem demonstrating the coral reef food chain. 4.Explain a relationship that humans have with a different species and how they help each other survive. (similar to the grouper and neon gobies)

Learning Target: Students will be able to give specific examples of how coral reefs benefit humans and animals.

Coral Reefs are important to us for a variety of reasons. Even though you may have never seen or heard of coral reefs before, they do a lot for us. Coals reefs provide protection of shorelines against waves, storms, and floods. This helps to prevent loss of life, property damage, and erosion.

You may not know that coral reefs are sometimes called the “medicine cabinets” of the 21st century. Coral reef plants and animals are important sources of new medicines being developed to treat cancer, arthritis, human bacterial infections, heart disease, viruses, and other diseases. Some coral reef organisms produce powerful chemicals to fend off attackers. Scientists are starting to research the medicinal potential of these substances. In the future, coral reef ecosystems could represent an increasingly important source of medical treatments.

Coral reefs also have a large economic value for the Unites States and many other countries around the world. They provide many jobs and a lot of the seafood that people enjoy eating.

Coral Reefs aren’t just important for us, but also for about every organism in the sea. About 25% of all marine life lives in the coral reefs around the world. There are sponges, sea slugs, oysters, clams, crabs, shrimp, sea worms, starfish, sea urchins, jellyfish, sea anemones, various types of fungi, sea turtles, and many species of fish. Think of them as the “rainforests of the oceans.” In fact, coral reefs support more species than any other marine environment of that size!

Coral reefs provide protection and shelter for these different species of fish. Without coral reefs, these fish are left homeless with nowhere to live and nowhere to have their babies.

Many species use the reef for protection. As coral grows it creates many cracks and crevices in the reef that make prefect hiding places for small fish.

The coral found on the reefs are also very important in controlling how much carbon dioxide is in the ocean water. The polyp’s you learned about earlier turn carbon dioxide in the water into a limestone shell. Without coral, the amount of carbon dioxide in the water would rise dramatically and that would affect all living things on Earth.

Guiding Questions:1.Explain one way coral reefs have a positive impact on the lives of humans. 2.If all coral reefs were destroyed predict how that would impact marine animals. 3.Pretend you are a marine animal and write a persuasive letter to your fish family stating why they should move to the coral reef. 4.Draw a picture of what you think a coral reef looks like.

Scientists estimate that there may be another 1 to 8 million undiscovered species of organisms living in and around reefs!

Scientists estimate that there may be another 1 to 8 million undiscovered species of organisms living in and around reefs!

Learning Target: Students will be able to express what risks/ threats face coral reefs and summarize the conservation efforts.

Coral reefs are being destroyed at an alarming rate. It is estimated that we have already lost 10% of the worlds reefs, and scientists say that in the next 50 years many of the coral reefs on Earth will be gone. This destruction is often connected with human activity such as pollution, sewage, erosion, irresponsible fishing, poor tourism practices, and global warming.Coral reefs can be damaged by a variety of pollutants that are produced by a variety of sources.

Agricultural runoff can contain very dangerous chemicals that will destroy coral reefs. Human sewage, often untreated, can add harmful nutrients, microorganisms, and other dangerous pollutants to coral reefs. Nutrients in this sewage can cause eutrophication. This causes algae to reproduce in large numbers and can completely take over a reef. Chemical pollution can also harm coral reefs. For example, oil spills, the result of spills from drilling or discharge of oil from vessels can harm reefs. They can be especially harmful if they occur during coral spawning because the oil can destroy any chances of reproduction. Solid Pollution such as plastics and discarded fishing nets can also damage reefs.

Many fishing practices harm the reef by physically damaging the reef. Blast fishing, a method of fishing in parts of the Caribbean, East Africa, and Southeast Asia, uses underwater explosions to damage the swim bladders of fish so that they float to the surface where they are easily captured. The blast of the explosions destroys coral and flattens the reef structure. In some places fishermen use a dangerous chemical called cyanide to stun fish so that they can be captured alive.

Many times fisheries located near coral reefs are guilty of overfishing. Overfishing can have a variety of negative effects on the environment. Overfishing can reduce the genetic variation in a population making it harder for species to adapt to environmental change and mate.

The biggest threat to coral reefs is the rising levels of green house gasses, caused in part by the burning of fossil fuels. These gasses are causing the ocean water to warm up. Water that is too warm causes coral bleaching. Coral bleaching occurs when corals are under stress and release their algae. This algae is the reason why corals are such beautiful colors and without this algae they lose their color and will eventually die.

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Coral reefs also face numerous natural threats. Weather-related damage to reefs occurs frequently. Large and powerful waves from hurricanes and cyclones can break apart or flatten corals. A single storm seldom kills off an entire colony, but slow-growing corals may be overgrown by algae before they can recover. Long periods of exceptionally low tides leave the corals exposed, which damages reefs. The amount of damage depends on the time of day and the weather conditions.

 In addition to weather, corals are vulnerable to many predators. Fish, marine worms, barnacles, crabs, snails and sea stars all prey on the soft inner tissues of coral polyps. In extreme cases, entire reefs can be devastated by these predators.

There are many simple things that you can do to help that will make a BIG difference for coral reefs. Don’t put chemicals down your drain or on your lawn, instead use natural products. Even though you may be far from a coral reef ecosystem, these products end up in the water and this water may eventually end up in the ocean. It is also important to try to conserve water. The less water you use, the less runoff and wastewater eventually find its way into our oceans. A fun way to help is to visit a coral reef! Many vacation spots have beautiful coral reefs. When you go, hire local guides, this way you’ll learn about the reef from the people who know it best. When you visit a coral reef, treat it with care, do not touch or step on the corals. Make sure you leave the animals where you found them and do not pick them up or move them. If you have an aquarium, buy fish raised in captivity, not caught in the wild. Even just picking up trash that you see on the side of the road can make a difference!

Guiding Questions:1.Will you change anything about your day to day living to help our reefs? 2.Explain one way humans are hurting coral reefs. 3.Write a letter to the government playing the role as a concerned citizen to initiate the conservation of coral reefs. 4.Explain what effects eutrophication has on coral reefs.

Culminating Activity:Culminating Activity:

Working in groups of Working in groups of three students will take three students will take time in the library to find time in the library to find informational articles on informational articles on coral reefs. One students coral reefs. One students will be the group leader, will be the group leader, one student will be the one student will be the scribe, and one student scribe, and one student will be in charge of will be in charge of organization. Students organization. Students will then write a will then write a newspaper article to newspaper article to advocate for the advocate for the preservation of coral preservation of coral reefs. We will distribute reefs. We will distribute these newspaper articles these newspaper articles to the rest of the school. to the rest of the school.

Eutrophication: a condition of ecosystem responses to human activities that fertilize water bodies with nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P), often leading to changes in animal and plant populations and deprivation of water and habitat quality Ecosystem: a biological community of interacting organisms and their physical environmentEquator:an imaginary line drawn around the earth equally distant from both poles, dividing the earth into northern and southern hemispheres and constituting the parallel of latitude (optional)skeleton: an internal or external framework of bone, cartilage, or other rigid material supporting or containing the body of an animal or plant.Colony:a place where a group of people with similar interests live togetherTentacles:a slender flexible limb or appendage in an animal, especially around the mouth of an invertebrate, used for grasping, moving about, or bearing sense organs.Atolls:a ring-shaped reef, island, or chain of islands formed of coral.Hurricanes: a storm with a violent wind, in particular a tropical cyclone in the Caribbean

Adaptation: a change or the process of change by which an organism or species becomes better suited to its environmentPollution: the presence in or introduction into the environment of a substance or thing that has harmful or poisonous effectsErosion: the gradual destruction or diminution of something

Bennett, P. (2006). Exploring Habitats: Ocean habitats. Milwaukee, WI: Gareth Stevens

Brooke, S. (2008). Coral Reefs In Danger. New York, New York : Grosset & Dunlap

Frisch, A. (2008). Our world: Coral reefs. Mankato, MN: Creative Education

Nye, B. (1999). Big Blue Ocean. New York: Hyperion Books

Parker, S., Boyd, N., Powell, S., Webb, S., & Friggens, N. (2014). Coral reef. New York : Priddy Books, c2014

Simon, S. (2013). Coral reefs. New York, NY: HarperChin, J. (2011). Coral reefs.

New York, NY: Flash Point

Earle, S. A. (2003). Coral Reefs. Washington : Jacket