Coral Reef For Kids | Exploring the Coral Reef

hey everybody we were just looking at some pictures of coral reefs hey Quinn show them okay I can't believe we have such beautiful rocks under our ocean they're actually not rocks they're animals I'm not talking about fish kittens I'm talking about coral reefs they're actually animals I think we need to learn about coral reefs let's learn about coral reefs coral reefs have existed on earth for around 500 million years but the reefs we see today were created over the past five thousand to ten thousand years and since then they've been providing shelter and food for many generations of ocean life and [Music] coral reefs are among the most diverse as well as productive biological communities on our entire earth coral reefs are home for thousands and thousands of different species of plants as well as animals even though cruel reefs cover less than 1% of the ocean floor they support about one-fourth of all marine species and not only do they play a vital role in supporting healthy oceans coral reefs also come in a wide variety of spectacular shapes sizes and colors hornies can be found in all oceans of the world except the Arctic Ocean you will find them mostly between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn this is because reef-building corals live these warmer waters in fact the water temperature needs to be about 20 to 28 degrees Celsius where 68 to 82 degrees Fahrenheit this is the best temperature range for proper growth and the health of coral reefs so what exactly is a coral reef well when you first see a coral reef you may think they look like plants or even rocks but corals are actually animals living in a colony most coral reefs are made up of thousands of polyps and these polyps all live together in a small area on the outside of the reef think of it like having to share a room with thousands of your brothers and sisters that's right Quinn these coral polyps have to live this way to survive see when each of these polyps die they leave behind a skeletal structure and these skeletal structures are the building blocks of all coral reefs and this is where the next generation of polyps will grow and grow the reef for generations of new hard corals these hard corals are made up of calcium carbonate most corals rely on something called zoo ends and fella Zoo is and what this Zoo is and fella lives within the tissues of course they come in an array of dazzling colors that give coral reefs their spectacular rainbow hues corals provide shelter and nutrients that zoo ISM felid need for photosynthesis in return the zoo isn't fella provides the corals with oxygen and the sugars for carbohydrates needed to live on that which are produced through the process of photosynthesis did you know that there are two main types of corals stony corals or hard corals are reef building corals the hard corals have the hard calcium carbonate skeletons that provide the structure that helps hold coral polyp colonies together like we mentioned earlier then we have soft corals soft corals are you guessed it soft and bendable they have a core that is would like as well as a fleshy exterior they often kind of look like trees or plants most of the plants that live on the coral reef are very species of sea grass seaweed as well as algae some other things you may see are different types of grazing fish such as parrotfish you will also find sea urchins and sponges along with other organisms they are usually found near areas that have waves the ocean waves help to bring food nutrients as well as oxygen needed to support the plants and animals that live within the coral reefs you see quarrel also needs the sunlight to grow this is why they thrive in shallow warm water because of this you will not usually find a coral reef deeper than 40 to 45 feet deep in the ocean coral reefs seem to prefer tropical seas this is most likely because the seawater is warmer as well as clearer even though coral reefs are well known for the presence of a lot of coral growing together coral reefs are home to a large diverse group of life forms other than corals some of these include similar-looking species like Sein enemies sea fans sponges sea squirts as well as fish crustaceans mollusks and a lot of other species would you believe that corals act like a water filter and these corals increase the water quality in the entire area of the reef so does the quarry feet well Quinn since polyps do need to eat to stay alive you can think of the coral reef as actually eating the polyps eat small animals called plankton as well as algae - algae gets their food from the Sun by using photosynthesis as well this is yet another reason why coral reefs form close to the surface at the surface of the water it is clear and this is a perfect place where the Sun can feed the algae so where our quarry is located most of the world's coral reefs can be found in Southeast Asia and near Australia in fact the largest coral reef in the world is the Great Barrier Reef the Great Barrier Reef stretches over 2600 miles now let's talk more about the different types of coral reefs there are three main types of coral reefs first we have a French reef bringe reefs grow close to the shoreline fringe reefs can also be attached to the shore or there can be a thin strip of water called a lagoon or channel between the land and the coral reef Barrier Reef's grow further away from the shoreline sometimes Barrier Reef's can be as far as several miles from the shoreline last we have an atom an atoll is a circle of coral that surrounds a lagoon of water it begins as a fringe reef located around a volcanic island as the coral continues to age and grow the island sinks into the ocean and just the ring of coral is left in fact some atolls are so large that people can live on them an example of this is the beautiful islands of the Maldives have you ever seen a piece of coral that is white this is called coral bleaching and coral bleaching is a process in which corals as well as seen enemies lose their zoo ends and fella and this causes them to lose their color bleaching is actually a stress response which can happen because of temperature changes coral bleaching is not always fatal however it can lead to disease and then death it is estimated around 60% of the world's reefs are at risk and in Southeast Asia 80% of reefs are considered endangered fortunately there are things we can do to help reduce the impacts we have on corals as well as the marine life that depends on them so if you learned something about coral reefs in this video and want to help then now is the time to become part of the movement to protect these vital ecosystems you can do this by telling more people how important these reefs are to our oceans and our planet hey did you like this video hey did you learn something new then don't forget to sub and smash that like button and we'll see you on the next hey guess what boom

Channel: Hey! Guess What

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Keywords: coral reef for kids, exploring the coral reef, coral reef facts for kids, coral reef documentary, learn about the ocean for kids, great barrier reef, great barrier reef for kids, ocean for kids, coral reef for children, coral reef video, ocean video, kid friendly videos, homeschool, parents, coral reef, coral, ocean, coral reefs for kids, coral reefs, coral reef kids, the coral reef, what is coral reef, ocean videos for kids, coral reefs 2020

Id: cwJDlDZvJ-0

Length: 10min 35sec (635 seconds)

Published: Mon May 11 2020