Corals in the context of "Marine biogenic calcification"

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⭐ Core Definition: Corals

Corals are colonial marine invertebrates within the subphylum Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. Coral species include the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and secrete calcium carbonate to form a hard skeleton.

A coral "group" is a colony of very many genetically identical polyps. Each polyp is a sac-like animal typically only a few millimeters in diameter and a few centimeters in height. A set of tentacles surround a central mouth opening. Each polyp excretes an exoskeleton near the base. Over many generations, the colony thus creates a skeleton characteristic of the species which can measure up to several meters in size. Individual colonies grow by asexual reproduction of polyps. Corals also breed sexually by spawning: polyps of the same species release gametes simultaneously overnight, often around a full moon. Fertilized eggs form planulae, a mobile early form of the coral polyp which, when mature, settles to form a new colony.

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👉 Corals in the context of Marine biogenic calcification

Marine biogenic calcification is the production of calcium carbonate by organisms in the global ocean.

Marine biogenic calcification is the biologically mediated process by which marine organisms produce and deposit calcium carbonate minerals to form skeletal structures or hard tissues. This process is a fundamental aspect of the life cycle of some marine organisms, including corals, mollusks, foraminifera, certain types of plankton, and other calcifying marine invertebrates. The resulting structures, such as shells, skeletons, and coral reefs, function as protection, support, and shelter and create some of the most biodiverse habitats in the world. Marine biogenic calcifiers also play a key role in the biological carbon pump and the biogeochemical cycling of nutrients, alkalinity, and organic matter.

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Corals in the context of Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services

The Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services is a report by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, on the global state of biodiversity. A summary for policymakers was released on 6 May 2019. The report states that, due to human impact on the environment in the past half-century, the Earth's biodiversity has suffered a catastrophic decline unprecedented in human history, as an estimated 82 percent of wild mammal biomass has been lost. The report estimates that there are 8 million animal and plant species on Earth, with the majority (5.5 million) represented by insects. Out of those 8 million species, 1 million are threatened with extinction, including 40 percent of amphibians, almost a third of reef-building corals, more than a third of marine mammals, and 10 percent of all insects.

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Corals in the context of Photosymbiotic

Photosymbiosis is a type of symbiosis where one of the organisms is capable of photosynthesis.

Examples of photosymbiotic relationships include those in lichens, plankton, ciliates, and many marine organisms including corals, fire corals, giant clams, and jellyfish.

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LINKED FROM (PARENTS)
← Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services ← Marine biogenic calcification ← Photosymbiotic
LINKS TO (CHILDREN)
Marine invertebrates → Subphylum → Anthozoa → Phylum → Cnidaria → Colony (biology) → Polyp (zoology) → Coral reef → Calcium carbonate → Cloning → Tentacle → Exoskeleton → Asexual reproduction → Spawning → Gamete → Full moon →