Corals and Coral Reefs

What lives inside of hard corals?

• black sea urchins

• red algae

• dinoflagellates

• zooplankton

_______ & _______ are harmful to corals.

• calcium carbonate & red algae

• dinoflagellates & jellyfish

• sedimentation & excess nutrient runoff

• dinoflagellates & sedimentation

Parrotfish eat the limestone skeleton of coral and excrete the sand as waste. This is called

• coral bleaching

• eutrophication

• sedimentaion

• bioerosion

In eutrophication, excess nutrients cause ________ to bloom and overgrow coral.

• algae

• decomposers

• sea urchins

• fish

Coral polyps secrete _____________ that creates the structure of the coral reef.

• sediments

• staghorn

• calcium carbonate

• camouflage

A _______ reef forms offshore and has a lagoon between it and the main coast.

• fringing

• barrier

• atoll

• sinking

Coral ecosystems require _________ water to prevent sediments from accumulating.

• sunny

• warm

• still

• moderate motion

ENSO events (choose 2)

• are also called El Niño

• correlate to coral bleaching

• produce abnormally cold water

• are only confined to the coast of California

Which way do corals NOT get food?

• They have a symbiotic relationship with the genus Symbiodinium.

• They capture it using their tentacles.

• They receive nourishment from dinoflagellates.

• They consume excess nutrient runoff.

Clear, well-lit water is needed

• to prevent sediments from accumulating

• to keep parrotfish away

• for photosynthesis to occur

• for coral bleaching