EVERYDAY SCIENCE

Detailed explanation-1: -Massive reef structures are formed when each individual stony coral organism-or polyp-secretes a skeleton of calcium carbonate.

Detailed explanation-2: -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.

Detailed explanation-3: -Reefs form when polyps secrete skeletons of calcium carbonate (CaCO3).

Detailed explanation-4: -The zooxanthellae, like all plants, convert sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water into oxygen and carbohydrates that feed the coral polyps and help them produce reef-building calcium carbonate. In return, the corals provide the zooxanthellae with protection and the compounds they need for photosynthesis.

Detailed explanation-5: -Coral reefs are massive structures made of limestone deposited by coral polyps. Often referred to as the “rainforests of the sea, ” coral reefs support approximately 25 percent of all known marine species.