Many think that CORAL is a plant but, it is not!  Coral is a limestone formation that is made by millions of tiny animals that are found in our oceans.  Coral animals are called polyps that are usually less than 1 inch in diameter but some may measure up to 1 foot.  A coral polyp's body is shaped like a tube and at one end there is a mouth with tiny tentacles all around the mouth and at the opposite end it is attached to the limestone skeletons of dead polyps.  A coral polyp builds its skeleton, which is made of limestone, by taking calcium out of sea water to form limestone (calcium carbonate).  The polyp then puts the limestone it made around the bottom half of its body.  As new polyps are formed the coral grows larger and larger.  Coral polyps actually eats the larvae of shellfish.  Coral has many different shapes and it could look like branching trees, large domes, small irregular crusts, or even little tiny organ pipes.  Their colors can come in beautiful tan, orange, yellow, purple,and green.  When they die, they leave limestone skeletons that form  the foundation for the coral reefs.  Coral reefs can only be found in warm, shallow, tropical seas because these corals that form reefs cannot live in water below 65°F.  In the coral polyps that form reefs there must also be single-celled algae.  The warm, shallow tropical seas allows sunlight to get to the algae contained in the polyps so photosynthesis can take place.  Some of the reefs can grow to be thousands of feet long and can break the surface of the water.  Many of the worlds most colorful fishes live in and around coral reefs.  A parrot fish not only lives among the corals, but feeds on it also.  Their front teeth are fused together to form a ''beak'' that they use to bite off pieces of living coral.  Teeth inside their throats grind the coral down, and the fishes then swallow the edible part.  Coral Reefs are found mostly in tropical waters.  Coral Reefs are beautiful sea gardens because many colorful sea animals including fishes, starfish, mollusks, and sea anemones live around them.

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