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They are most often found in warm, clear, shallow water where there's plenty of sunlight to nurture the algae that the coral rely on for food.Ĭoral reefs cover less than 1 percent of the ocean floor - all the reefs combined would equal an area of about 110,000 square miles (285,000 square km), only about the size of the state of Nevada.
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Most of the substantial coral reefs found today are between 5,000 and 10,000 years old, according to CORAL. For successful reproduction, the colony must rely on a neighboring colony that produces the other reproductive cell. Within each coral colony all the polyps will produce only eggs or only sperm. Other species, such as elkhorn coral, are gonochoric, which means they create colonies composed of either all males or all females. Sexual reproduction occurs during a mass coral spawning event that, for some species, happens only once a year. Some coral species, such as brain coral, are hermaphrodites, which means they produce eggs and sperm at the same time. Additionally, the zooxanthellae provide the coral with their lively colors - most coral polyp bodies are clear and colorless without zooxanthellae. The polyps, in turn, provide a home and carbon dioxide for the algae.
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These algae live inside the coral polyp's body where they photosynthesize to produce energy for themselves and the polyps. The corals have a symbiotic, or mutually beneficial, relationship with the zooxanthellae, according to the U.S. Most corals, however, depend on algae called zooxanthellae to provide energy via photosynthesis. Some species catch small marine life, like fish and plankton, by using the stinging tentacles on the outer edges of their bodies. Most sightings have come from that country, though it’s been spotted as far afield as the Great Barrier Reef in Australia.Corals belong to the phylum cnidaria (pronounced ni-DAR-ee-uh), a group that includes jellyfish, anemones, Portuguese man o' war and several other gelatinous and stinging marine invertebrates.Ĭorals feed by one of two ways. The mimic octopus was discovered in 1998 off the coast of Sulawesi, Indonesia. The male dies a few months after mating and the female dies a short time after laying eggs. The sac is placed in a holding area for a few months later when the female lays its eggs, which have been fertilized by the sperm in the packet on their way out of the female’s body. Reproductionĭuring mating, the males hold onto the females and use their mating arm, called a hectocotylus, to insert a sperm sac, called a spermatophore, into the main body, or the mantle, of the female. It forages in broad daylight, foraging on open sand flats, where it’s exposed and vulnerable, for crustaceans and fish. The need for mimicry as protection may come from when and how the mimic octopus feeds. Even more remarkably, the cephalopod only takes the form of a sea snake when bothered by damselfish-who are preyed on by sea snakes. To mimic the sea snake, for example, the octopus tucks into a hole, sticking just two arms out (that display black bands) and rippling them in opposite directions, mimicking a snake’s movement. More unusually, it can also contort its body to take on the appearance and behavior of several animals, including the lionfish, jellyfish, sea snake, a shrimp, a crab, and others. Like other mimics, the octopus changes its coloring to disguise itself.
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The above octopus seen in the Bonin Islands near Japan in 2008. Octopuses are masters at flying under the radar, changing their coloration and texture to match their surroundings in seconds.