Corals

Ø Coral animals or corals are marine, mostly colonial, polypoid coelenterates,

looking like miniature sea anemones and living in a secreted skeleton of their
own.

Ø Their calcareous or horny skeleton is also commonly known as coral. Some

corals grow into massive, solid structures; others form large, branched
colonies.

Ø Most of the corals belong to the class Anthozoa and the few to class Hydrozoa
of phylum coelenterate.

Ø Corarls are fascinating animals that form reefs

Ø Corals are looks like colorful plant growing on seafloor but they are animals

Ø Mostly feed at night

Ø To capture their food (zooplankton to small fishes), corals use stinging cells
called nematocysts. These cell located at coral polyp’s or tentacles and outer
tissue
 Coral Polyp
ü A typical coral polyp from a colony is a small organism about 10 mm long and 1 to 3
mm in diameter.
ü A basal disc is absent because the basal region of polyp is surrounded by a
calcareous exoskeleton.
ü Oral disc bears numerous tentacles, in several rows around an elongated, oval or
circular mouth.
ü Pharynx or stomodaeum is short and without siphonoglyphs.
ü Mesenteries are restricted to the upper part of coelenteron and mesenterial filaments
contain only one glandular lobe bearing nematocysts.
ü Body wall is without cinclides and nematocyst bearing structures (acontia).
ü Muscles are poorly developed while little is known about nervous system.
ü Living polyps are found only on surface layers of coral masses.
ü They feed at night both by raptorial and suspension feeding. When not feeding, they
withdraw into cup-like cavities of skeleton.
ü Coral polyp are usually clear.
ü There are bright colors that characterize many corals are actually various types of
algae growing in the polyp’s tissue
 Coral Polyp
Mutual Symbiosis with Algae
Zooxanthellae algae helps the coral in several ways
• Remove waste from coral and use the waste product for photosynthesis

• Byproducts of photosynthesis oxygen and carbohydrate used by corals

Coral Bleaching: The mutual interaction of coral and algae is strongly

dependent on temperature of surrounding water, as the water warm algae expelled
from coral’s tissue, causing it to lose its color and food source this phenomenon
is called “coral bleaching”
 Coral Reefs
ü Coral colonies grow continuously in size by budding of polyps and often form
extensive masses, known as coral reefs.
ü According to T. Wayland Vaughan(1917), a coral reef is a ridge or mound of
limestone, the upper surface of which is near the surface of sea and which is formed
chiefly of CaCO3 secreted by coral polyps.
ü Principal builders of coral reefs are stony corals (madreporaria), but other important
contributers are the hydrocorallines and alcyonarians.
ü Coralline algae and foraminiferan protozoa also take part in the formation of coral
reefs.
ü Reef building corals require warm shallow waters (normally above 20C).
ü They are therefore limited to the Indo-pacific, the central western pacific, and the
Caribbean regions north of Bermuda.
ü About 50 species of corals contribute in the formation of reefs along the Florida Keys
and in the West-Indies.
ü About one-quarter of marine species depending on reefs for food and shelter
Constituents of Coral Reefs :
Animals: Molluscs cell, sponges, sea anemones, flatworms, some snails,
crabs, octopus, sea urchins, sea cucumbers, sea sneaks, sharks, green turtles
Plants: Mainly seagrasses, mangroves and the zooxanthellae algae

Conditions for Coral Reefs formation:

Temperature Depth of Sea Sunlight Clear Water Nutrients

For photosynthesis Turbid water For Growth
• Shallow Water
• Related to entry of reduce light
• 20-30˚C entry
Sunlight for
photosynthesis
 Types of Coral Reefs
Fringing Coral reefs:
§ The most common type of coral reef
§ Typically grow near the coastline
§ Separated from the shore by narrow lagoons
§ Most active zone of the coral growth facing the sea
§ Seaward zone is commonly called the edge or front
§ Shallow water channel, 50 to 100 meters broad
§ Between the reef-edge and shore at low tide flat bottom surface, called reef flat
§ Fringing reefs are the most common type of reef found in the Philippines,
Indonesia, Timor-Leste, the western coast of Australia, the Caribbean, East
Africa, and Red Sea
 Types of Coral Reefs
Barrier Coral reefs:
§ Are long and formed in a way that is parallel to the coastline
§ Separated from the shore by deeper and wider lagoons
§ Lagoons is 10-50 fathoms deep
§ At their shallowest parts the corals can appear above water’s surface
forming a literal ‘barrier’
§ The Great Barrier Reef along the north- eastern coast of Australia. It is about
2000 km long and upto 150 km from shore
 Types of Coral Reefs
Atoll Coral reefs:
§ An atoll is also termed a coral island or lagoon island.
§ It is a ring-like or horse-shoe shaped reef
§ That encircles a lagoon but not an island.
§ The lagoon varies from a few to about 90 km across.
§ It may be complete or broken by a number of channels, of which only a few
are navigable.
§ Outer side of the reef slopes off rather steeply into the depth of ocean.
§ The atoll of Bikine, famous for atomic and hydrogen bomb tests, lies in the
Pacific Ocean
 HYDROZOA
Ø Solitary/colonial, polyp and medusoid forms

Ø Radial symmetry

Ø Body wall-ectodermis, mesoglea and gastrodermis

Ø Gastrocoel is spacious

Ø Cnidoblasts are absent

Ø Body has thick perisac in some animals this is very solid and called coral

Ø Polymorphism is seen, Alternation of generation

Ø Sex cells are formed from ectoderm

Ø Fertilization is external

Ø Holoblastic cleavage, Planula larva

Ø 2700 genera included, Five orders

Ex: Hydra, Bougainvillea, Millipora, Physalia,Velella, Porpita, Helistemma

 SCHYPHOZOA
Ø Solitary, medusoid
Ø Medusa umbrella or bell shaped with/without stalk

Ø Gastrocoel has gastro fibres, Gonads and bifurcated into four radial septa. With tetra
Radial symmetry

Ø Umbrella structure is with more mesoglea

Ø True velum is wanting

Ø Animal end is with lappets

Ø Exumbrellar surface has median manubrium

Ø Sex cells derive from gastro dermis and release gametes into gastrocoel

Ø Monoecious

Ø 200 genera included Five orders included

Ø E.g; Rhizostoma, Aurelia, Periphylla, Cassiopea, Lucernaria, Charybdea,

Pericolpa, Tomoya
 ANTHOZOA
Ø Solitary/colonial, polypoid marine forms

Ø Hexamerous, octamerous, polymerous, biradial or radio-bilateral symmetric animals

Ø Anterior region becomes wide to form oral disc to accommodate tentacles

Ø Mesoglea with tissue

Ø Gastrocoel has septa formed by mesenteries

Ø Epidermis secretes test of CaCO3 or horny material

Ø Inner side of mesentery has cnidoblasts

Ø Gonads derive from gastrodermis and developed from mesentery.

Ø Gametes are released into gastrocoel

Ø Fertilisation is external. Life cycle includes planula

Ø It includes 6100 genera 2 sub classes and eleven orders

E.g; Pennatula, Metridium, Fungia, Adamsia, Madripora, Meandrina, Gorgonia,
Alcyonium, Tubipora, Heliopora
 General Characteristics of Phylum Ctenophora
Habitat: These are exclusively marine animals.

Habit: Animals of this Phylum are solitary and free swimming.

Body Organization: They are diploblastic acoelomate organisms. The body is

transparent, gelatinous, soft and without segmentation, along with a pair of long,
solid, retractile tentacles.

Body Symmetry: These organisms are bi-radially symmetrical.

Tissue: In these invertebrates, a tissue-level organization is present.

Locomotion: They have eight strips of cilia, called comb rows. These comb-like rows
help in locomotion.

Reproduction: They are hermaphrodite animals, and reproduction occurs through

sexual means.

Fertilization: These organisms have external fertilization and indirect development.

Digestive system: They have both extracellular and intracellular digestive systems.

Nervous system: They have an aboral sense organ called the statocyst for balance.
Respiration and excretion: They do not have specific organs
for respiration and excretion, and generally, the body surface does this process.

Size and Shape: The size of the tiny Phylum Ctenophora 1mm 0.04 inch spheroids to
5 feet long ribbons. The Ctenophora are lobe-shaped.

Example: Pleurobrachia, Ctenoplana, etc.

Class- Tentaculata
a) They have two tentacles that can retract into specialized sheaths and
small stomodaeum.
b) Sea walnuts have a large mouth and mainly feed on larval molluscs and copepods.
c) Venus girdle is a flattened, ribbonlike Ctenophora found in tropical waters.
d) In sea gooseberries, the tentacles are smaller secondary, and the primary tentacles
are reduced; there are smaller, secondary tentacles, and the primary tentacles are
reduced. These organisms are commonly found on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts.
e) Examples: Sea Walnut, Sea gooseberry, Venus Girdle etc.

Class - Nuda
a) The species of this class do not have tentacles.
b) They have a largemouth, and they feed on Jellyfish and other ctenophores.
c) They are free swimmers and are typically found in all oceans and seas around the
world.
d) Examples: Beroe, Mnepmiopsis, etc.