Coral reef

Marine habitats
File:Blue Linckia Starfish.JPG Biodiversity of a coral reef
Littoral zone Intertidal zone Estuaries Kelp forests Coral reefs Ocean banks Continental shelf Neritic zone Straits Pelagic zone Oceanic zone Seamounts Hydrothermal vents Cold seeps Demersal zone Benthic zone

A rocklike, often ridge-shaped structure of calcium carbonate (CaCO₃) built in shallow tropical seas by generations of coral animals.

See also

• Atoll
• Barrier reef
• Coralline
• Fringing reef

External links

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• Corals and Coral Reefs overview at the Smithsonian Ocean Portal
• About Corals Australian Institute of Marine Science.
• International Coral Reef Initiative
• Moorea Coral Reef Long Term Ecological Research Site (US NSF)
• ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies
• NOAA's Coral-List Listserver for Coral Reef Information and News
• NOAA's Coral Reef Conservation Program
• NOAA's Coral Reef Information System
• ReefBase: A Global Information System on Coral Reefs
• National Coral Reef Institute Nova Southeastern University
• Marine Aquarium Council
• NCORE National Center for Coral Reef Research University of Miami
• Science and Management of Coral Reefs in the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand
• Microdocs: 4 kinds of Reef & Reef structure
• Reef Relief Active Florida environmental non-profit focusing on coral reef education and protection
• Global Reef Record – Catlin Seaview Survey of reef, a database of images and other information
• Corals and Coral Reefs Nancy Knowlton, iBioSeminars, 2011.

Template:Corals Template:Aquatic ecosystem topics

This article is part of Project Glossary, an All Birds project that aims to write comprehensive articles on each term related to animals.

Project Glossary
Glossary v • t • e A Abdomen • Aberrant • Abmigration • Abrasion • Absolute magnitude • Absorption line • Abyssal • Abyssal plain • Abyssal zone • Accelerating universe • Accidental • Accretion • Acquisition • Active galaxy • Active prominence • Adaptive radiation • Addition • Adult • Adult plumage • Aerie • African parrot • Air mass • Air sac • Airfoil • Alarm call • Albedo • Albino • Allopatric • Allopreening • Altazimuth mounting • Altitude • Altricial • Alula • Americas • Anadromous • Anaerobic • Anatomy • Annual parallax • Annual proper motion • Annualar eclipse • Anoxic • Antarctic Circle • Ant-follower • Anterior • Anticyclone • Anting • Antimatter • Antiparticle • Antiphonal song • Aperture • Apogee • Apparent magnitude • Arachnoid • Arboreal • Arctic Circle • Argon • Arm • Asexual reproduction • Asterism • Asteroid • Astronomical unit • Asynchronous hatching • Atmosphere • Atoll • Atom • Auricular • Auricular patch • Aurora • Autapomorphy • Authigenic • Autotroph • Autumnal equinox • Avian influenza • Axillaries • Azimuth B Back • Background radiation • Backshore • Backwash • Baleen • Band • Bank • Bar • Barbel • Barbule • Barnard • Barrage • Barred • Barred spiral galaxy • Barrier island • Barrier reef • Baryon • Basal (phylogenetics) • Basic I • Basin • Bathyal • Beach face • Belly • Beryllium • Benthos • Berm • Bib • Big Bang • Big Crunch • Big Rip • Binary star • Binomial nomenclature • Biodiversity • Biogenic • Bioluminescence • Biomass • Biome • Bioturbation • Bipedalism • Bird anatomy • Bird diets • Bird egg • Bird flight • Bird hybrid • Bird intelligence • Bird migration • Bird nest • Bird of prey • Bird reproduction • Bird senses • Bird song • Black body • Black dwarf star • Black hole • Black smoker • Blazar • BL lacterae object • Bloom • Blue shift • Body fossil • Bok globule • Booted • Bore • Brackish • Breaker zone • Breakwater • Breast • Breastband • Breeding plumage • Brood parasite • Brown dwarf star • Bustle • Buzzard • Bycatch C Calcareous • Calcium carbonate • Calendar year • Caldera • Callosity • Calve • Carapace • Carbon cycle • Carnivore • Carpal • Carpal bar • Casque • Casual • Catadromous • Cere • Cheek • Chemosynthesis • Chevron • Chin • Chlorophyll • Chromatophore • Cilia • Clade • Class • Cline • Cloaca • Coast • Cob • Cold seep • Collar • Colonial • Colour morph • Commensalism • Commic terns • Commissure • Common name • Concordant coast • Congeneric • Conservation status • Conspecific • Continental crust • Continental margin • Continental rise • Continental shelf • Continental slope • Convection • Convergent evolution • Coral bleaching • Coral reef • Coralline • Coriolis effect • Coverts • Crepuscular • Crest • Cretaceous • Crissum • Critically Endangered • Crown • Crown patch • Cryptic • Culmen • Current • Cusp • Cyclone D Dactyly • Dark zone • Dawn chorus • Deforestation • Delta • Demersal • Deposit feeding • Depositional coast • Detritus • Deuterium • Dewlap • Diagnostic • Digital object identifier • Dihedral • Discordant coast • DNA • DNA sequence • Doldrums • Dorsal • Drift • Drowned coast • Dune E Ear tuft • Earth • Echolocation • Echo-sounding • Eclipse plumage • Eddy • Egg • Egg tooth • Ekman effect • El Nino • Emargination • Emergent coast • Endangered • Endangered species • Endemic • Endemism • ENSO • Eocene • Equator • Erosional coast • Estuary • Eustatic • Eutrophication • Evolution of birds • Extant • Extinct • Extinct in the wild • Extinction • Exoskeleton • Eye • Eye line • Eye ring • Eye stripe • Eye wattle • Eyebrow F Face skin • Facial disk • Family • Fast ice • Fathom • Fault •Feather • Feather fringe • Fecal sac • Femur • Feral • Ferrel cell • Fertilization • Fetch • Filoplume • Filter feeding • Finger • Fjord • Flagellum • Flank • Fledgling • Flight feathers • Flightless bird • Flipper • Fluke • Foot • Foot projection • Forced wave • Forecrown • Forehead • Foreneck • Foreshore • Forest • Forewing • Fossil • Fractal • Frazil ice • Fringing reef • Frons • Front • Frontal shield G Gabion • Gander • Gape • Gape flange • Genus • Gibber • Gill rakers • Glacier • Gleaning • Glide • Gonydeal angle • Gonys • Gorget • Gravitational lens • Grease ice • Grease ice • Groyne • Guano • Gular • Gular fluttering • Guyot • Gynandromorph • Gyre H H1N1 • Habitat • Habitat loss • Hackle • Hadal • Hadley cell • Half-hood • Halocline • Hand • Hatchling • Hawk • Headland • Heat capacity • Helium • Herbig-Haro object • Herbivore • Hermaphrodite • Hibernation • Hindneck • Holdfast • Holoplankton • Hood • Hotspot • Hover • Humerus • Hurricane • Hybrid • Hydrocarbon • Hydrogen • Hydrothermal vent I-K Ice age • Iceberg • Ice cap • Ice lead • Ice rafting • Ice sheet • Ice shelf • Igneous rock • Immature • Incertae sedis • Infraorder • Insectivore • Intermediate coast • Internal wave • International Standard Book Number • Introduced species • Intertropical convergence zone • Invertebrate • Iridescence • Irradiance • Irruption • Island arc • Isolating mechanisms • Isotasy • IUCN • Juvenile • Katabatic wind • Keel • Kite (verb) • Kleptoparasitism • Krypton