Over the next few weeks, we will be learning all about the Coral Reef Ecosystems that surround much of the Australian coastline. You will need to complete the tasks set out below and hand them in at the conclusion of this section of work for marking. You will find information attached that will assist you in completing these tasks titled Some of the Organisms that Live On Coral Reefs. SUBTOPIC LOCATIONS OF AUSTRALIAN CORAL REEFS BIOTIC AND ABIOTIC FACTORS POPULATIONS AND COMMUNITY RELATIONSHIPS SPECIFIC RELATIONSHIPS ASSESSMENT TASK TO BE COMPLETED Refer to an atlas for this activity and also collect a map of Australia from your teacher to complete this activity. 1. Locate each of the locations of Australian Coral Reefs in the atlas and prepare a neat, well labelled map: Great Barrier Reef Flinders Group and Lizard Island North West Australia Rowley Shoals, Scott Reef, Seringapatam Reef Ningaloo Reef Abrolhos Islands Shark Bay The Coral Sea Torres Strait Refer to your notes on Biotic and Abiotic Environments 1. What are the biotic and abiotic factors of the Coral Reef Environment? Give at least 8 examples of each. Represent these as a diagram showing a scene from a Coral Reef Environment. Refer to your notes on Populations and Communities. 1. What is a limiting factor? What are the limiting factors that affect a coral reef? 2. Choose one organism that lives on or around the coral reef. If there were unlimited growth of this organism, what would this do to the biotic and abiotic factors in this environment? You may represent this information in any way you wish (i.e. a diagram, list, paragraph etc..) Refer to your notes on Special Relationships in an Ecosystem. 1. Identify five niches of organisms within the coral reef ecosystem. Explain these in detail. 2. What are the roles that organisms play in a coral reef ecosystem? Give at least 10 examples. Remember to use the terms commensalism, mutualism, predation and parasitism.
FEEDING RELATIONSHIPS Refer to your notes on Food Chains and Food Webs. 1. Construct three coral reef food chains. 2. Construct a coral reef food web with at least fifteen organisms in it. Make sure the arrows go the right way! ADAPTATIONS Refer to your notes on Plant and Animal Adaptations. 1. How have the organisms (plants and animals) adapted to survive in a coral reef environment? Describe at least 10 organisms and their adaptations. Remember to identify plants and animals and also recall the three main types of adaptations structural, behavioural and functional. CONSERVATION OF CORAL REEFS Refer to attached sheets Natural Threats to Coral Reefs and Anthropogenic Threats to Corals. 1. In what ways can the delicate balance in a coral reef ecosystem be upset? Are there any ways that we can prevent this? These Assessment Items should be assembled in one of the following ways: Made into a booklet Inserted into a display folder Packaged into a protective sleeve Other things to try to remember: All pages should have a clear title Presentation should be neat and tidy Pages should be numbered and a table of contents must be included References other than those provided in this booklet must be included in the correct format Refer to the Coral Reef Ecosystem Assessment Rubric for details as to how you will be marked for each task, remembering that: You should aim for the highest level you are capable of achieving Your work ethic and presentation of your assessment tasks will also be assessed
Some of the Organisms that Live On Coral Reefs PRODUCERS: (Organisms that photosynthesise to produce their own food i.e. plants) PHYTOPLANKTON (PLANT PLANKTON): - Microscopic single-celled plants living on the surface of the ocean over the reef. SEAWEEDS (ALGAE): - Halimeda: chains of flat green bead like plates containing calcium carbonate eaten by fish and other herbivores when it dies it form limey chips that form sand on reefs and may later even form reef structures. - Sea Lettuce: crinkly soft green leafy eaten by shrimps, shells provides shelter for many small organisms (shrimp, fish etc ). - Sea Grapes: green bead-like branching weed eaten by fish, slugs, shells provides shelter for small shrimp, crabs, fish. - Coralline-red Algae: forms a hard (calcium carbonate) red paint-like crust over coral and coral debris on the reef top protects the reef from wave damage. BLUE-GREEN BACTERIA (BLUE-GREEN ALGAE): - Form dark blackish slime over rocks and coral debris, eaten by shells, slugs and other small organisms. SEAGRASS: - Green grass-like flowering plants that live on flat sandy areas eaten by turtles, fish slows the movement of water, stops sand from swirling MANGROVES: - Medium sized trees that grow in the water on the edge of the coral cays (islands) or other islands on the calm side have pneumatophores (breathing roots) are important as many species of fish and shrimp lay eggs among their roots leaf litter form rich feeding ground for the young and other scavengers and decomposers these and other trees provide shelter and nesting sites for birds. CORAL: - Coral is an animal, but it is sometimes considered a producer because of the microscopic, single-celled plants (called Zooxanthellae) that live in its skins, which carry out photosynthesis and provide the coral with food. The coral is then eaten by other organisms. CONSUMERS and SCAVENGERS: (Organisms that eat other food I,e, other animals) ** Other terms to know: 1. HERBIVORES: eat plants only phytoplankton, blue green algae, seaweed, sea grass. 2. CARNIVORES: eat other animals only including zooplankton. 3. OMNIVORES: eat both animals and plants. 4. DETRIVORES: eat detritus (debris), which is small bits of dead plants and animals floating in the water currents or settled on the bottom of the ocean floor. 5. DECOMPOSERS: break down organisms that have died bacteria and fungi which live in the water, on other organisms and in the sediments at the bottom of the ocean floor.
CONSUMERS and SCAVENGERS: continued.. ZOOPLANKTON (ANIMAL PLANKTON): - Microscopic and very small animals floating on the surface of the ocean over the reef and consisting of larvae of many shrimp, crabs, anemones, urchins, stars, shells and small members of those groups eat phytoplankton and are eaten by filterfeeders such as sponges, anemones, clams and whale sharks. SPONGES: - Attached to dead coral, seaweed, crabs draw water in through holes and filter debris, bacteria, small animals and plants from it eaten by sea slugs, sea stars, sea urchins, fish provide an anchor for seaweeds and shelter and a feeding place for crabs, shrimp, worms, sea cucumbers, gobi fish. SEA ANEMONE: - Attached to dead coral and some crabs feed by paralysing prey with stinging cells (nematocysts) on tentacles then bringing it into the mouth feed on plant plankton, animal plankton, small fish (butterfly fish), shrimp, crabs and also debris eaten by sea slugs some provide shelter for clown fish or other anemone fish. CORALS: - Small anemone-like animals living alone or in colonies with a hard calcium carbonate skeleton which forms the base of coral reefs when the coral animal dies, and when broken up forms coral sand some are soft corals which have no hard skeleton provide shelter for fish, crabs, shrimp and a support for sponges, anemones, seaweeds get 98% of their food from the zooxanthellae (see previous page under coral section) living in their tissue feed on phytoplankton, zooplankton, debris, worms, small fish caught with their stinging cells are eaten by butterfly fish, crown-of-thorns starfish, turtles, sea slugs, drupa shells require very special environmental conditions to live and grow the balance can very easily be upset causing the coral to die. WORMS: - Consist of flatworms, ribbon worms, and bristle worms some destroy the coral by burrowing into it or destroy its skeleton others burrow into the sand or build tubes on coral, crabs, sponges and shells. - Polycads: frilly flatworms many are toxic eaten by fish, corals, cone shells - Tube worms: e.g. Christmas tree worm and feather duster worm build tube over coral killing it feed on plankton and debris in the water currents eaten by sea stars, urchins - Ribbon worms: feed on small invertebrates, shrimp etc, live in crevices, under coral eaten by cone shells CRUSTACEANS: - Animals with a hard exoskeleton, jointed legs and antennae and usually 5 pairs of legs - Shrimp: live under coral or in crevices, some burrow in sand, may live on sponges, sea cucumbers larvae are a part of the zooplankton eaten by fish, corals, anemones, octopus feed on seaweed, debris, some cleaner shrimps take parasites from fish, sponges etc.. - Crabs: as for shrimp - Large crabs: e.g. mud crab scavenge for debris burrow in the sand eaten by fish, sharks, sea stars - Parasitic barnacles: live on other crabs and coral bore into it, eventually killing it - Mantis shrimp: predators on other crustaceans, small fish, molluscs and worms MOLLUSCS: - Gastropods: (snail-like shells) eaten by triggerfish, wrasses (fish), cone shells, olive shells eat other shells, seaweed, blue green bacteria, red coralline algae the mantle secretes a hard calcium carbonate shell examples include: Limpets cling to rocks and coral eat algae Cowries live on the reef eat algae, sponges and debritus Helmet shells eat starfish and sea urchins Olive shells eat other molluscs and debritus Cones can be deadly poisonous shoot a poisonous harpoon to kill prey
Trumpet shells eat crown-of-thorn starfish, other shells, tube worms Drupa shells feed on coral Sea slugs, nudibranchs and sea hares shell-less gastropods live on or under coral slabs feed on algae, seaweed, sponges, anemones, soft corals eaten by cone shells, some fish may be toxic or have an unpleasant taste to escape predators bright colours of nudibranchs warn off predators colours may blend with brightly coloured neighbouring sponges, corals etc. - Bivalves: (two hinged shells like clams, mussels, pipus) filter plankton and small animals from the water currents burrow into the sand or are attached to coral rock Giant clam contains Zooxanthellae in its tissue like coral does, which feeds the clam also filters plankton from the water - Cephalopods: (octopus, squid, cuttlefish) including the very poisonous blue-ringed octopus hides in crevices eats crab and shrimp eaten by some large fish and sharks ECHINODERMS: - Sea stars: live on the reef and sand bottom between patches of reef some eat detritus others eat sponges, bivalves the crown-of-thorn starfish eats huge amounts of living coral some live cooperatively with worms, snails, crabs, shrimp, and small fish by providing shelter or transport and in return they get the leftovers eaten by sharks, fish and helmet shells - Brittle stars: live under the coral eat plankton and detritus eaten by fish - Sea urchins: live amongst the coral eat algae, sponges, gastropods eaten by helmet shells, triggerfish, puffer fish - Sea cucumbers (holothurians): live on the sandy bottom between the patches of the reef take in the sand and feed on the algae attached to the grains also may trap zooplankton in feeding tentacles found near the mouth or eat detritus some live on sponges eaten by humans, crabs FISH: - Damselfish: eat plankton and algae - Wrasse: medium sized fish eat small invertebrates (shrimp, molluscs etc ) on the bottom of the sea floor - Butterfly fish: eat live coral - Angelfish: eat sponges and small animals - Eels: eat small fish and debris - Parrotfish: eat algae and destroy coral rock - Surgeonfish: eat algae - Groupers: eat small fish - Cardinal fish: eat shrimp, crabs - Sharks: eat other fish and animals living on the bottom, turtles and seabirds TURTLES (REPTILES): - Mostly live outside the reef, but sometimes enter a lagoon eat jellyfish, sponges, soft coral, crabs, squid, fish, seagrass, seaweed eaten by humans and sharks BIRDS: - Heron: wade in reef flats eats fish and crabs - Terns: nest on trees their droppings fertilize the soil on coral islands allowing other plants to grow eat fish - Boobies (gannets): eat fish nest in the trees their droppings fertilize the soil on coral islands allowing other plants to grow