Coral Reef By Abi Davis

WHAT IS A COARL ? • Coral Reef are underwater structures• Coral is living structure compound• Its made up by anemone • Some parts are made up of

small living animals.• Reefs grow best in warm, shallow, clear and

sunny waters. • “Barbados' coral reefs have a variety of species

such as mollusks, polychaetes, sea urchins, cucumbers, sponges and reef fish. “

CORAL IN BARBADOS

•Every sea area in Barbados is covered by reef

•The 3 types of reef’s in Barbados are • Bank Reefs ( semi-circular outline )• Patch Reefs ( An Isolated area, often circular) • Fringing Reefs ( Reef’s along the shores )

•bank reefs takes up over 38.3km •fringing reefs take up over 20.4 km.

WHY ARE THEY IMPORTANT ?

•Corals are very important for Barbados because • Fisheries ( Many fisheries depend on reefs

for support ) • Tourism ( lots of money is paid for tourist

to visit the beautiful reefs we have)• Erosion ( some reefs reduce the speed and

energy of the wave from eroding the land) • Land Formation ( Some coral communities

can form limestone and sometimes it can become a island

Threats To Barbados reefs

•There are many threats to Barbados reefs• Some natural cause are, chemical

pollution, sewage, coastal development, overfishing, coral mining and careless scuba divers, boaters, and snorkelers weaken coral reefs and threaten the wildlife dependent upon them.

•Reefs in the tropics are being damaged by deteriorating water quality, physical damage and by climate change

•The tissue that covers the Corals are damged easily

•Hurricanes or strong winds can damage reefs in shallow waters

•All the boats and jet skis used for the tourist are getting lots of money but then at the same time they are destroying or reefs

•We depend on our reefs to keep our fish safe

The End