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Ocean Portal by The Smithsonian Institution

Coral Reefs

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BLOG POST Making Science Sing: The Longest Time (Coral Triangle Edition) How do you make science sing? Just ask a couple of female scientists to sing about their research interests and their passion is quickly conveyed in a quirky little tune. Informative, inspir...MORE STORIES


	IMAGE GALLERY MORE GALLERIES Two Views of Coral Reefs: Thriving and Threatened Coral reefs are beautiful, vibrant ecosystems that house roughly one quarter of...
	BLOG POST MORE STORIES Hotspot of Biodiversity We have arrived as the advanced scouting party to the scene of this year's field...
	IMAGE GALLERY MORE GALLERIES Will Coral Reefs Survive Acidification? Nestled among the beautiful coral reefs of Papua New Guinea (PNG) is a place tha...

EDUCATOR RESOURCES

LATEST TODAY'S CATCH


					A School of Hawaiian Squirrelfish Apr 10, 2013 - 9:03AMCheck out the eyes on these Hawaiian squirrelfish (Sargocentron xantherythrum)! Because squirrelfish are almost entirely nocturnal, they need big eyes to absorb as much moonlight and starlight as they can in the dark. During the...

From Sea Sponge to HIV Medicine

Mar 26, 2013 - 9:40AM

Tectitethya crypta (formerly known as Cryptotheca crypta) is a large,...

Coral Spawning

Mar 15, 2013 - 9:07AM

Corals are sedentery animals, so how do they reproduce? One way is sexually...

SPOTLIGHT


Corals and Coral Reefs Coral reefs are the most diverse of all marine ecosystems. They teem with life, with perhaps one quarter of all ocean...

New Christmas Tree Coral Jun 7 2011 - 10:38am Ocean scientists recently discovered this new species of black coral off the coast of southern California.	Dr. Stephen Cairns Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am Dr. Stephen Cairns is a research zoologist and chair of the Department of Invertebrate Zoology at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History. His research focuses on the diversity, distribution, and evolution of deep-water corals—both fossil and living. Learn all about deep sea corals in...
Coral Scientist Brendan Roark: On an Urgent Mission Jul 27 2011 - 11:25am Deep-sea coral beds are true biodiversity hotspots. It’s urgent that we study these extreme environments because we know so little about them, because they are important communities for so many deep-sea creatures, and because they are so susceptible to human activities.	Black Corals Jun 7 2011 - 12:29pm Black corals, like this one growing on the Manning Seamount off the New England coast, often resemble bushes or trees. Contrary to its name, the living tissue of black coral can be one of several colors. It’s the skeleton that is black. See more pictures of coral in our Deep-sea Corals article.
Coral Reef on Gangga Island, Indonesia Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am Corals, sponges, and algae are the major components of most coral reef communities. To the untrained eye, they are sometimes difficult to tell apart. More about coral reef ecosystems can be found in the Coral Reefs section.	Fragile Branching Corals in Acidic Water Aug 2 2012 - 3:11pm Branching corals, because of their more fragile structure, struggle to live in acidified waters that surround the volcanic CO2 seeps of Papua New Guinea. Read more about how reef scientist Laetitia Plaisance uses carbon dioxide seepsocean acidification and how it will affect biodiversity on coral...
Coral Reef in the Florida Keys Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am Coral reefs provide food for swarms of fish, both large and small. More about coral reef ecosystems can be found on our Coral Reefs overview page.	Unhealthy Coral Reef, Kiritimi, Line Islands Dec 7 2009 - 1:48pm Algae has overtaken this coral reef off heavily populated Kiritimati, or Christmas Island. Few fish swim in the murky waters. The causes include pollution, overfishing, and increased water temperature. More about coral reef ecosystems can be found in our Coral Reefs featured story.
The Island of Moorea Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am On Moorea, an island in French Polynesia, researchers are striving to complete a biocode—a DNA catalog of every life form big enough to pick up with tweezers.	Aleutian Islands Deep-Sea Corals Aug 12 2011 - 2:04pm In this brief video clip from NOAA, catch a glimpse of the startling beauty and diversity of life found among deep-sea corals near the Aleutian Islands in Alaska. Explore more in the multimedia feature "Coral Gardens of the Deep Sea."
Hawaii’s Maro Coral Reef Sep 28 2012 - 10:35am This bluefin trevally is lucky to call Hawaii’s Maro Coral Reef, part of the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, its home. Maro is the largest reef in the Northwest Hawaiian Islands and just one of the many marine ecosystems protected in the 140,000 square miles of...	Gold Coral Jun 7 2011 - 12:24pm Species of deep-sea gold coral, or Gerardia, often have a tree-like shape, as you can see in this specimen. See more pictures of coral in our Deep-sea Corals article.
Deep-Sea Coral Community Jul 27 2011 - 10:46am Dr. Amy Baco-Taylor observed corals like these on her first submarine dive to a deep-sea coral bed off the coast of Hawaii. They include primnoids, zoanthids, and Gerardia.	10 Things You Never Knew About Seahorses Jan 2 2013 - 1:01pm By Lindsay Aylesworth, Project Seahorse
Coral Reef Covered by Silt and Sand Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am This coral reef in the Western Pacific Ocean was killed by human input of silt and sand from nearby islands reaching the coral reef habitat. More about coral reef ecosystems can be found in our Coral Reefs featured story.	Bleached Corals, Pacific Ocean Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am Compare the healthy coral on the left with the bleached coral on the right. Increased water temperatures caused the bleached coral to lose the microscopic algae that give the coral color and provide it with food. More about coral reef ecosystems can be found in the Coral Reefs section.