Coral Reefs: Diversity at its Finest

Location: Stockton University

Date: May 16th, 2016

Everyone knows that coral reefs are beautiful and are a perfect vacation spot, but just how important are coral reefs to the health of planet earth? Before we all arrive to the Keys for the greatest class trip ever, we first had to learn a little about the ecosystems that we would be seeing and exploring. Coral reefs are highly diverse ecosystems that can sustain a lot but it also has its limits. 

The organisms that live on the reef have specific adaptations to live there, how much light they need, what nutrients are available, how much space is available and how abundant predators are. At the top of the reef food web, the Caribbean Reef Shark can be found, lurking on the edges. The reef shark has evolved over millions of years to become an almost perfect predator. Their streamlined body helps them to glide through the water and to make it easier to speed up to catch prey. 

These sharks are actually believed to shape the coral community and maintain it. They could play a role in help shape the coral by keeping the fish that feed directly on the coral within its population limits. Since the reef shark is usually the top predator in the ecosystem, it doesn’t really need camouflage or a highly developed defense mechanism but its body color does have counter-shading; this is when the top of the fish is darker so it blends in with the dark sea floor while the bottom of the fish has a lighter color so it blends in with the light at the surface. The teeth are serrated and are specifically designed to cut into its meal, shredding it into smaller pieces for easier feeding. 

What makes this shark somewhat special is that it has been observed to be relaxing on the sea floor and even sometimes in caves. This is strange behavior for a shark that is so active. Just like every other species of sharks, they possess many electroreceptors on their snout, also referred to as the ampullae of lorenzini. These pores are specifically designed to help detect everything from magnetic fields to temperature changes; they’re basically a sixth sense for the sharks. Sharks along with every other living organism on the coral reef help keep it thriving, each in a special and unique way.

Interested in Seeing a Coral Reef in Person?

Just How Important are Coral Reefs?