How do some of the reef animals get their prey?

Corals also eat by catching tiny floating animals called zooplankton. At night, coral polyps come out of their skeletons to feed, stretching their long, stinging tentacles to capture critters that are floating by. Prey are pulled into the polyps' mouths and digested in their stomachs.

1. What are some prey in the coral reef?
2. What do reef fish eat?
3. What organisms prey on coral and how do they eat it?
4. How do animals survive in the coral reef?
5. How do coral reefs affect animals?
6. Can coral sing?
7. How do seahorses eat?
8. What is coral made of?
9. How do coral reefs produce food?
10. How do seahorses help coral reefs?
11. How is a coral reef an ecosystem?
12. Why do animals live in coral reefs?
13. How do corals protect themselves from predators?
14. What animals survive coral?

What are some prey in the coral reef?

Fish, marine worms, barnacles, crabs, snails and sea stars all prey on the soft inner tissues of coral polyps. In extreme cases, entire reefs can be devastated if predator populations become too high.

What do reef fish eat?

Herbivores feed on plants. The four largest groups of coral reef fishes that feed on plants are the parrotfishes, damselfishes, rabbitfishes, and surgeonfishes. All feed primarily on microscopic and macroscopic algae growing on or near coral reefs.

What organisms prey on coral and how do they eat it?

These sharks as well as rays generally eat crabs, shrimps, squids, clams, and small fishes. Parrotfish use chisel-like teeth to nibble on hard corals. These fish are herbivores and eat the algae within the coral. They grind the coral's exoskeleton to get the algae, and defecate sand.

How do animals survive in the coral reef?

In a coral reef, fish and other animals can hide from larger predators, like sharks, because they have small, flat bodies. Coral reefs have lots of cracks and crevices. The small, flat bodies of coral reef fish allow them to move quickly and make sharp turns at the last second to escape predators.

How do coral reefs affect animals?

Coral reefs support some of the most biodiverse ecosystems on the planet. Thousands of marine animals depend on coral reefs for survival, including some species of sea turtles, fish, crabs, shrimp, jellyfish, sea birds, starfish, and more. Coral reefs provide shelter, spawning grounds, and protection from predators.

Can coral sing?

They discover coral flagellates. And sings while it does it!” Local business owners, however, embraced the discovery. “If coral can communicate with other coral, it stands to reason it can communicate with other organisms, even humans” said Elena Havens, owner of the Blacktip Haven resort.

How do seahorses eat?

They anchor themselves with their prehensile tails to sea grasses and corals, using their elongated snouts to suck in plankton and small crustaceans that drift by. Voracious eaters, they graze continually and can consume 3,000 or more brine shrimp per day.

What is coral made of?

Most structures that we call "coral" are, in fact, made up of hundreds to thousands of tiny coral creatures called polyps. Each soft-bodied polyp—most no thicker than a nickel—secretes a hard outer skeleton of limestone (calcium carbonate) that attaches either to rock or the dead skeletons of other polyps.

How do coral reefs produce food?

Corals get their food from algae living in their tissues or by capturing and digesting prey. ... The algae live within the coral polyps, using sunlight to make sugar for energy.

How do seahorses help coral reefs?

Seahorses are the slowest fish in the ocean and are often at the mercy of the current. This is why seahorses have a strong and unique tail that helps them anchor onto coral and other objects, allowing them to take a break from the currents, and to rest and feed.

How is a coral reef an ecosystem?

A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem characterized by reef-building corals. Reefs are formed of colonies of coral polyps held together by calcium carbonate. ... Sometimes called rainforests of the sea, shallow coral reefs form some of Earth's most diverse ecosystems.

Why do animals live in coral reefs?

Why do so many fish live near coral reefs? Because of warm water and abundant food supply, coral reef communities are bustling with life. ... Small fish can hide from big predators inside a coral reef. Because of this, many small tropical fish are found in coral reefs.

How do corals protect themselves from predators?

Nematocysts. In a cross between a chemical and physical defense mechanism, most corals also have nematocytes for protection — stinging cells on the end of coral tentacles that are used to sting, capture and kill off small prey and neighboring coral in a continuous battle for space.

What animals survive coral?

Fish, corals, lobsters, clams, seahorses, sponges, and sea turtles are only a few of the thousands of creatures that rely on reefs for their survival. Coral reefs are also living museums and reflect thousands of years of history.