What Type of Vegetation Is Found in Coral Reefs?

What Type of Vegetation Is Found in Coral Reefs?
••• mesutmerve/iStock/GettyImages

Vegetation plays an integral role in coral reef ecosystems. The main types of vegetation in coral reefs are seagrasses and algae. Plants and algae are producers; all other living things in a coral reef depend on them for survival.

Geography

Coral reefs live in warm, tropical sea water all over the world. Many reefs are found in the Caribbean Sea and South Pacific. Large coral colonies live off the coast of the Florida Keys, Hawaii and Australia.

Types

There are two main types of vegetation in coral reefs: algae and seagrasses. They both use sunlight to make their own food through photosynthesis. These producers are the basis of the reef food chain.

Algae

Several types of algae live in coral reefs. They all provide food for other organisms in the reef. Blue-green algae process nitrogen in the reef ecosystem so that other organisms can use it. Coralline algae, a type of red algae, produce calcium carbonate which provides structure to the reef.

Seagrasses

Seagrasses are also producers. Unlike algae, they are true flowering plants. These grasses provide shelter for many species of young reef animals. The stems of seagrasses grow underground and act as a filter to trap sediment in the water. They also help prevent erosion by anchoring the plant on the sea bed.

Significance

All consumers in a coral reef ecosystem depend on plants and algae. They provide animals with food, shelter and oxygen. If reef vegetation does not thrive, the reef ecosystem may fail. Conversely, an overgrowth of algae could harm live corals.

Related Articles

Weather of Coral Reefs
How Have Plants Adapted to the Coral Reef to Survive?
Life Cycle of a Manatee
Plants That Live in the Deep Sea
What Eats Seagrass?
Organelles Involved in Photosynthesis
What Does Seaweed Need to Live?
What Do Chloroplasts Use to Make Glucose?
Trophic Levels of Coral Reefs
How Long Do Corals Live?
Energy Flow & Chemical Cycle Through Ecosystem
What Is the Function of Air Bladders in Seaweed?
Plants That Live in the Ocean Habitat
Is Algae a Decomposer, a Scavenger or a Producer?
Why Coral Reefs Come in Many Colors
Aquatic Ecosystem Facts
What Are Good Protists?
Role of Algae in the Ecosystem
What Are the Functions of Photosynthesis?
Examples of Secondary Pollutants

Dont Go!

We Have More Great Sciencing Articles!