Corals are not simply calcareous structures formed by polyps. This is one of the most incredible life forms on earth. Our top 10 includes the most beautiful coral reefs in the world.

Why are corals so attractive? Firstly, with its amazing natural beauty, variety of shapes, number of colors and shades, which reaches 400. Secondly, they do not appear anywhere: corals need clean water and a warm climate. And, perhaps, the main thing is fish and other fauna of the most incredible shapes and colors, which with their presence creates a complete picture of indescribable beauty.

10. Red Sea Barrier (Egypt)

The coral reefs of the Red Sea cannot be called the most beautiful in the world, but they do have very rare and interesting shades of some colors, such as yellow, red and pink. Corals located close to the coast attract snorkelers and diving enthusiasts from many countries, especially post-Soviet ones. Frankly speaking, it was the latter fact that became the reason for inclusion in our top 10.

9. Aldabra Atoll in the Indian Ocean (Seychelles) It occupies 200 km² and is notable for the fact that it has survived to this day in almost its original condition. All thanks to the fact that, once a pirate island, it was well hidden for a long time and was a hard-to-reach place. Now the beauty of this amazing coral reef is under the protection of the local government and UNESCO. The atoll is also notable for its huge population of turtles, reaching 150 thousand individuals.

8. Roatan Island in the Caribbean Sea (Honduras)

Here is the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef, one of the largest in the world. Diving began to develop here relatively recently, some 10 years ago, and man has not yet had time to exert his detrimental influence on this beautiful underwater corner of the planet. Therefore, if you want to admire the fish surrounded by pristine beauty, hurry up!

7. Palancar Reef in the Caribbean Sea (Mexico)

The reef, stretching for 5 km, is remarkable for its structure: there are many underwater caves, branches and crevices in which you can see quite rare black corals, and at the same time get acquainted with a variety of marine life forms. Here you can find giant barracuda, moray eels, spotted eagle rays, spiny lobsters, crabs, lobsters, and many colorful tropical fish.

6. Tubbataha in the Sulu Sea (Philippines)

This is an entire national park, a World Heritage Site UNESCO. It is approximately 15 million years old, so it takes pride of place among both the most beautiful coral reefs in the world and the most ancient. In a relatively small area (7,030 hectares) there are 75% of the corals existing on the planet (almost 400 species), and about 40% of the studied reef fish (more than 500 species). About 1,000 species of marine animals are found in these waters, including dolphins, sharks and whales. The fact that the schedule of local tourist diving vessels is scheduled a year in advance suggests that Tubbataha rightly made it into our TOP 10.

5. Raja Ampat in the Indian Ocean (Indonesia)

According to some estimates, this is where the greatest diversity of marine life can be found. No wonder this place is called World Richest Reefs(English: the richest reefs in the world). There are over 1,200 species of reef fish (25 of which are endemic). The diversity of corals is so great that it is 10 times greater than all species existing in the Caribbean combined! On top of that, at least a hundred sunken ships and planes have been recorded in the surrounding area. Isn't this every diver's dream?

4. Coral reefs of the Andaman Sea (India)

At one time, they delighted the famous Jacques-Yves Cousteau, who made a documentary here. It was here that 111 species of corals were discovered, previously unknown to science. The most beautiful site is located on the territory of the Mahatma Gandhi National Marine Park. Here you can admire stingrays, dolphins, turtles, as well as schools of colorful fish calmly swimming around enthusiastic divers.

3. Apo in the South China Sea (Philippines)

It occupies 34 km² and is home to several different ecosystems. Apo owes much of its title to one of the most beautiful coral reefs on the planet to water with unique transparency. On clear and calm days, visibility can exceed 50 meters. And there is so much to see here: several varieties of sharks and rays, huge tuna, lobsters, gorgonians, as well as many sea snakes that make you flinch at every accidental touch, especially at night.

2. Belize Barrier Reef in the Atlantic Ocean (Belize)

It ranks second in the ranking of the best coral reefs in the world. Its length is 280 km, and in such a vast area there is an unimaginable diversity of living organisms. And the most interesting thing is that, according to scientists, the reef is only 10-15% studied. Therefore, among the 140 thousand divers who visit this place annually, there are many who want to become discoverers.

The highlight of this beautiful place is the so-called “Great Blue Hole”. It is a circle of blue-black color, with a diameter of 300 meters, which seems bottomless. Almost the only inhabitants of the cave (which is actually a “hole”) are sharks; they can be seen even from the surface. The spectacle is quite impressive!

1. Great Barrier Reef in the Coral Sea (Australia)

The largest coral reef in the world is also considered the most beautiful. Its area is almost 345,000 km², this miracle of nature can be seen even from space. Home to a colony of coral polyps, this aquatic oasis is considered the largest ecosystem on the planet. There are over 400 varieties of corals and more than one and a half thousand species of inhabitants, including whales and sharks, octopuses and squids, parrot fish and butterfly fish, stingrays, crustaceans, turtles... The Great Barrier Reef is rightly considered a valuable world heritage site.

Coral reefs are large underwater formations consisting of the skeletons of coral polyps, which are marine invertebrate animals. The order of reef-building coral polyps called madreps or stony corals—they extract calcium carbonate from seawater and create a hard, durable exoskeleton that protects their soft, baggy bodies.

Each individual coral is called a polyp. New coral polyps live on the calcium carbonate exoskeletons of their ancestors, and after death they add another exoskeleton to the existing structure. Over many centuries, the coral reef grows with each new polyp and eventually becomes a large and visible structure underwater.

Corals can be seen everywhere - from the Aleutian Islands off the coast of Alaska to the warm tropical waters of the Caribbean Sea. The largest coral reefs can be seen in the clear, shallow subtropical and tropical ocean waters, where they grow rapidly. The largest of the coral reef systems, the Great Barrier Reef of Australia, is more than 2,400 kilometers long.

Coral life

According to the non-profit environmental organization Coral Reef Alliance (CORAL), there are hundreds of species of corals in the world. Corals come in a variety of shapes and colors, from round and curled brain corals, which resemble a human brain, to tall, elegant eight-rayed Muricea corals (sea whips) and sea fans, which have intricate, brightly colored appearances. trees or plants.

In photos: Stunning new coral species in Polynesia.

Corals belong to the phylum Cnidaria. This group also includes jellyfish, anemones, Portuguese man o' war and other marine animals. Although each individual animal is considered a polyp, corals are often described as colonies consisting of thousands of polyps.

Corals feed in two different ways: some species can catch small marine organisms such as fish and plankton using stinging tentacles on the outer edges of their bodies. However, according to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), most corals maintain a symbiotic (mutually beneficial) relationship with seaweeds known as zooxanthellae.

These algae live inside the body of the coral polyp and, through the process of photosynthesis, produce food for themselves and for the polyp. The polyps, in turn, provide the algae with a home and carbon dioxide. In addition, zooxanthellae give corals their vibrant colors—most coral polyp bodies are transparent and colorless.

Some coral species, such as brain corals, are hermaphrodites and produce both eggs and sperm at the same time. They reproduce through mass coral spawning, which in some species occurs only once a year on a specific night.

Other species, such as elkhorn coral, are dioecious and form colonies with only females or only males. Among these coral colonies, all the polyps of one particular colony produce only sperm. To continue the breeding process, they rely on a neighboring colony, which produces only eggs.

Photo of coral taken on a reef located behind Ofu Island, which is home to American Samoa National Park.

World of coral reefs

Most of the significant coral reefs that currently exist began to form 5,000-10,000 years ago, according to information from the CORAL organization. These formations primarily exist in warm, shallow waters that provide sufficient sunlight for the algae that provide food for the coral polyps.

Coral reefs cover less than 1 percent of the ocean floor—collectively, they would cover an area of ​​approximately 285,000 square kilometers, which is close to the size of the state of Nevada. However, they are among the most productive and diverse ecosystems on Earth.

Approximately 25 percent of all known marine species depend on coral reefs for food, habitat and reproduction. Corals are sometimes called the "rainforests of the sea" because of their biodiversity. They are habitat for more than 4,000 species of fish, 700 species of coral, and many thousands of other plants and animals.

However, according to experts, their lives are in imminent danger.

Coral reefs are in danger

According to scientists from the Hopkins Marine Station at Stanford University, coral reefs are vital marine habitats on which many ocean species depend. In addition, they provide direct economic benefits to people totaling approximately 30 billion annually through food, fisheries and tourism.

However, coral reefs face several threats. The first threat is increasing ocean acidification, caused by the oceans absorbing huge amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) released into the atmosphere by burning fossil fuels. This limits the corals' ability to produce the calcium carbonate exoskeletons they depend on for habitat.

Water pollution also negatively affects corals. Agricultural pesticides and fertilizers, oil and gasoline, sewage runoff, and soil from eroded land masses entering the ocean disrupt the delicate relationships that exist between the plants, corals, and other animals that are part of the reef ecosystem.

As ocean temperatures rise due to global warming, coral polyps reject the zooxanthellae they depend on for food. Once the zooxanthellae disappear, the corals also lose their bright colors, and all that remains is a white exoskeleton. This process is called coral bleaching. According to the non-profit environmental organization Coral Reef Alliance (CORAL), corals that experience bleaching usually die off.

Additionally, forms of fishing such as cyanide fishing (in which cyanide is used to make fish easier to catch), "blast fishing" using explosives, and overfishing by trawlers can destroy thousands of years old coral within minutes. reef.

"Overfishing, ocean acidification and ocean pollution are slowly killing coral reefs," Roger Bradbury, an ecologist at the Australian National University in Canberra, told the New York Times. " “Each of these factors individually is quite capable of causing the destruction of coral reefs around the world, but taken together this destruction is guaranteed.”

They are called oases of the ocean, and few things in this world can compare with their beauty. They are the longed-for dream of every diving enthusiast, and also a home for millions of fish... In this article we will talk about one of the most amazing creations of nature - reefs.

Meaning and definition of the term

Reefs - what are they? The word "reef" is translated from Dutch as "rib". The term was originally used by geographers and oceanographers to refer to a narrow, rocky area that was dangerous for navigation. Today, reefs are mainly called coral-algae formations on the ocean floor. They can be of different configurations and sizes, and have different location features. But not only corals can serve as “building materials” for reefs.

Types of reefs

Depending on what nature created reefs from, they are divided into several types.

For example, a rocky reef is formed due to the destruction of rocky shores or bottom. This natural phenomenon can be observed off the coast of Canada. In some areas of Scottish waters there are reefs created by tube worms. Sometimes the “builders” of this miracle of nature are oysters and bryozoans. Sometimes you can find a barrier reef of sea grass. Sometimes sponges serve as the basis for its creation. Such a reef, accordingly, is called a sponge reef, and if cyanobacteria have “worked hard”, then the formation is called a stromatolite. And finally, artificial reefs are those that are the result of human labor.

But all of the above phenomena are extremely rare in nature. The vast majority of the planet's reefs are a product of the vital activity of corals.

Coral reefs - what are they?

Underwater or partially on the surface limestone formations, the material for which are colonies of polyps and certain types of algae, are called

Polyps belong to the class of marine invertebrates. They live in shallow waters in the warm waters of the tropics. When a colony dies, many skeletons remain. And the descendants of the dead settle on top, who over time replenish the “heap” with their remains. And so on, ad infinitum. It turns out that a coral reef is nothing more than a concentrated mass consisting of a huge number of living and dead polyps.

But not every coral is suitable as a building material for a reef, but only one that is capable of absorbing calcium carbonate from ocean water. It is calcium that is responsible for the formation of the skeleton. And the latter, in turn, then becomes the basis for the coral formation.

Scientists say that the polyp in the body is responsible for the ability to absorb calcium. If such an element is missing, then the coral will not be able to participate in the creation of the reef.

Corals can have a variety of bizarre shapes, as well as the configurations they form. As for size, real giants grow over millions of years. And sometimes such intricate “laces” create reefs on the bottom of the sea that it’s hard to even imagine. You just need to see it with your own eyes.

Where are coral reefs found?

Photos of them can be seen in our article. One of the features of coral reefs is their heat-loving nature. They are fragile structures; cold water with high or low salinity, as well as a lack of sunlight, contribute to their rapid destruction. Therefore, they choose warm and comfortable seas as their main habitat, where almost 45% of the world’s “collection” is collected. 18% of reefs “live” in the Pacific Ocean, 17% in the Indian Ocean, 14% in the Atlantic Ocean, and 6% in the Red Sea.

But there are also exceptions. reef colonies that live in cold water. They are scattered all over the world and are hidden at great depths (about a kilometer). This is another distinctive feature of them, because reefs that are not prone to winter swimming usually choose shallow waters to live. The total reserve area of ​​these amazing marine objects on the planet is approximately 27 million square kilometers.

Population of coral castles

Coral reefs are called oases of sea deserts for a reason, but because of the richest reserves of fish that live in “beautiful castles.” They are attracted here, of course, not by the beauty of nature, but by delicious food in the form of polyps. Thus, the house also serves as lunch for the fish.

Each reef is home to hundreds of them. They are usually small and very bright. Red, poisonous yellow, green, purple, black... The constant flickering of these “lanterns” around the body of the reef creates an indescribable picture.

The scale is also impressive. Of the 20 thousand of all bony fish on the planet, about a third live in coral reefs. In addition to fish, a huge number of worms, mollusks, sponges, crustaceans, and algae live here.

Types of coral reefs

Depending on their location, there are several main types of coral reefs:

• Coastal (or fringing) reefs encircle the islands and are located in shallow waters. They are a narrow terrace that starts on the shore and ends at some distance, already in the water.
• Barrier reefs are much further removed from the coastline and are separated from it by a deep depression.
• completely hidden under water. Not a single part of it protrudes above the sea surface. Such configurations are also called atolls.

Largest barrier reef in the world

The most famous and largest barrier coral reef on the planet is the Australian one. It is located in the north-eastern part of the waters surrounding this continent, and stretches along Queensland, occupying about 435 square kilometers. Such an area could accommodate the ships of all countries of the world, and there would still be room for a small country.

This gigantic conglomeration of multi-colored corals began to form 18 million years ago and over such a long period of time managed to grow to unprecedented sizes that impress even experienced diving enthusiasts. consists of many large and small, uniquely shaped islands. It can even be seen from space!

Coral treasures of the Red Sea

Not every traveler can afford to go to Australia to admire the reefs. But there is a wonderful alternative - Egypt. The untold riches of the Red Sea are impressive and therefore attract millions of tourists every year.

Coral reefs in Egypt are distinguished by their diversity and magical pink and blue colors. In addition, they are a magnet for marine life. Having dived to the bottom, you can see not only beautiful coral castles, but also a huge number of rare fish. Dolphins frolic in the shallow waters, and the shore is literally dotted with resting turtles. They, too, like tourists, arrived here in response to the “coral call.”

In this article we looked at reefs of different sizes and shapes, what reefs are and what is their beauty. All their varieties were described. You can also admire the reefs, photos of which we present, in this article. We remind you once again that coral varieties are the most common. Therefore, when we talk about reefs, in 90% of cases we mean coral ones. You can see from the photographs that it is truly a breathtaking sight. Today, coral reefs are considered practically one of the wonders of the world.

Seas with coral reefs are found in the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans. The most famous among them are the Coral Sea off the coast of Australia, in which the famous Great Barrier Reef is located, and the Caribbean Sea located in the Atlantic Ocean. Corals are quite whimsical living organisms that cannot live in every body of water.

Seas with coral reefs

All seas with coral reefs - the seas are warm. The temperature in them all year round should be in the range from 18 to 30°C, otherwise neither the reef-forming corals themselves nor their larvae will survive. That's why most seas with coral reefs located in tropical and equatorial latitudes. But there are exceptions - areas heated by warm currents originating in the tropics. For example, they can be found off the coast of Japan, where they are warmed by currents from the warm Chinese Sea, or off Bermuda, where the Gulf Stream carries water masses from the Caribbean. Conversely, where cold currents invade tropical seas (for example, off the western African coast), there are no corals.

Warm water is a necessary condition for coral growth, but not yet sufficient. Most of their species feed on the activity of microscopic algae – zooxanthellae. It is these tiny plants that live right inside the cells of coral polyps that give them the brightest colors of the most unimaginable colors. Without its symbionts, the coral bleaches and dies. And algae, in order to survive and “feed” the coral, need light.

That's why seas with coral reefs mostly not deep and located either on the continental shallows or in areas with pronounced bottom relief - volcanic uplifts and underwater ridges. So, there are a lot of reefs on the border of the Pacific and Indian oceans, because there are enough islands and a large area of ​​shallow waters. Again, there are exceptions to this rule - sometimes there are coral islands - atolls surrounded by reefs in fairly deep water areas far from the coast.

However, here you need to understand that the reef grows over millions and billions of years. Once upon a time in ancient times there were warm shallow waters seas with coral reefs. Coral polyps died, having outlived their life, and calcareous skeletons remained from them. Many of these skeletons form the dead, lower part of the reef, essentially rock created by tiny animals. And already on the upper, illuminated part live corals live.

Over the course of many years, the reef grew, and with it, due to tectonic movements, the depth increased, and the sea turned into an ocean. Thus, atolls surrounded by reefs arose far from the coast - over several million years, the corals themselves created the shallow water they needed. Due to the light requirements of corals and their symbionts, reefs, as a rule, are not found where the water is cloudy, for example, due to suspended silt or proliferating plankton.

Another feature seas with coral reefs – high salinity of water. They do not tolerate desalination and even the Great Barrier Reef is cut by rivers flowing into the sea, and the mouth of the Amazon prevents the spread of corals from the Caribbean further along the South American coast.

The coral seas located in the Atlantic and Indo-Pacific (water areas of the Indian and Pacific oceans) differ greatly in the species composition of reef-forming corals. Most of them belong to the same genera of madrepores - Acropora and Porites; in the Indo-Pacific there are over 400 different species of reef builders, and in the Atlantic there are another 75 unique to this ocean. Although Atlantic corals are a different species, they often look almost identical to their Pacific counterparts and lead similar lifestyles.

This is due to the fact that they most likely have common ancestors. Previously, about 50 million years ago, the Atlantic and Indo-Pacific were connected, but then, due to plate drift, the Atlantic Ocean was separated from the Pacific by the Isthmus of Panama, and from the Indian by the African continent. The straits that remained after this, which still connect these oceans, are too cold for the spread of heat-loving larvae of colorful marine inhabitants. Therefore, their Atlantic group turned out to be isolated and developed independently, leading in the course of evolution to the emergence of species unique to this ocean.

The richest species diversity of corals in the waters of the Atlantic is in the Caribbean Sea, and in the Indo-Pacific - the area between the Philippines and the northern Australian coast. As a rule, the more species there are in one sea ​​with coral reefs, the larger these reefs are and the faster they grow. If it contains fewer than 50 species of corals, it is usually small and poorly developed.

But the best way is to see the beauty of coral reefs with your own eyes. And I offer you the most interesting film “Coral Paradise” by Leni Riefenstahl, which will introduce you to the beauty of one of the seas with coral reefs:

Coral reefs are the largest and most magnificent living structures on our planet, the greatest repositories of biological formations. Although today, unfortunately, they are in danger of extinction. Scientists have estimated that if immediate measures are not taken to correct the situation, we risk losing up to 70% of all coral reefs by 2050.

Let’s hope that people will still be able to preserve our oceans, including coral reefs, in the form they are today, and our descendants will be able to admire their magnificence not only from pictures in books, but also in person.

We invite you to take a look at our selection of coral reefs, which are considered the most beautiful and fantastic on Earth.

Coral reefs of the Red Sea

The Red Sea is home to more than 260 different species of stony corals and over 1,100 species of fish. This sea is located between the Sahara and the Arabian deserts. The Red Sea coral reef is over 1,200 miles long. Its age exceeds 5000 years. They began to emerge during the reign of the ancient Egyptian pharaohs.

Coral reefs of the Florida Keys

The shallow waters of the Florida Keys provide ideal conditions for the creation of beautiful coral reefs. These corals were formed due to the warm tropical climate under the influence of waves. There is a lot of plankton here, which is necessary for the survival of various species of living beings. Unfortunately, these reefs are on the verge of extinction and, according to some sources, by 2020 they may completely die.

Mesoamerican Barrier Reef

The Caribbean Sea is home to many species of fish and rare animals. It borders one of the world's largest and most beautiful coral reefs. Its size is approximately 943 kilometers. This reef is also subject to various threats: changes in sea level and ocean chemistry.

For many years, in the area of ​​the Philippine coral reef of Apo, active fishing took place to catch all living things, including the use of incendiary substances. As a result, a third of the coral reef has completely disappeared. The Philippine government has decided to ban fishing in an area of ​​170 square miles off the coast of the island of Mindoro. Today Apo Reef is a National Park and Conservation Area.

Andros in the Bahamas is considered one of the longest barrier reefs in the world (its length is more than 140 miles). Divers have the opportunity to explore many interesting areas within these reefs. The island of Andros, near which this reef is located, is located along the edge of an ocean chasm called the Tongue of the Ocean.

Maldives Chagos-Lakshadwhil atolls

This structure is a chain of coral reefs that is 280 km long. These reefs are located along the coast of Belize, approximately 300 meters from the coast in the northern part and 40 kilometers in the southern reaches of the country. The Belize Barrier Reef is part of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef, which is one of the largest reefs in the world (2nd after the Great Barrier Reef).

The name “Raja Ampat” itself means “4 kings”. The four major islands of Batanta, Misuul, Salwati and Waigeo, which are connected to hundreds of smaller islands, surround these coral reefs. This Indonesian coral reef is rich in wildlife. There are more than 1,500 species of fish, about 700 species of shellfish and more than 500 species of stony corals.

Barrier Reef of New Caledonia

This is the third largest coral reef and is also considered one of the most magnificent in the world. This is where the endangered dugong lives and where green turtles lay their eggs. The place near the reef is famous for its clear waters. The lagoons of this barrier reef are included in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

This reef extends over approximately 130 thousand square miles. That's bigger than the United Kingdom. The Great Barrier Reef is undoubtedly the world's largest coral reef. Moreover, it is even the largest object created naturally from living organisms. It is considered one of the seven wonders of the world.

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