20 Importance of Coral Reefs to Environment

Categories: Creatures

20 Importance of Coral Reefs to Environment

Coral reef is one from many ocean ecosystem that we see frequently. The existence of coral reef provides many benefits toward the live in the ocean yet to the live in the land as well.

Not only as a shelter and food resources for many living beings but the importance of coral reefs to environment is way broad than that.

Since not so many of you who knows about this, I would like to share you with some information that I have.

1. Habitat for many living beings

Coral reef become one from so many types of ocean habitats that is important to support the ocean life. In the coral reef you may see that there are a lot of living beings that live in the coral reef. You will see so many creatures such as plants and even animals that live in there.

2. Nitrogen support

In the coral reef ecosystem there is this nitrogen fixation that will help to support the live not only coral reef but also another ocean living being.

3. Food support

Another important thing come up from the coral reef is that is has become one of the marine food support to fulfill the marine living beings’ need. Even the coral reef is needed phytoplankton to live since phytoplankton will provide food for the coral reef to live. And another plants that live around the coral reef also providing another living beings in needs of food.

4. Protecting the coastlines

You do know that the structure of coral reef is quite hard and has a big size. With its structure that is like that, we can actually get some benefits. The real benefit that we can actually see and get from that is that one of the importance of coral reefs to environment is that it helps us to protect the coastline from such a big waves that may destroy the coastlines.

5. Indicator of a good ocean environment

As I already mentioned to you before through some of the article before that coral reef is actually needing a stable environment where it has a stable condition of all aspects that can support its life. So when you see that there is a certain place is having coral reef and then by the time goes by the coral reef experiencing bleaching or die, it means that the environment is not healthy.

6. Maintaining the condition beneath the ocean

Coral reef also help us to maintain the condition beneath the ocean. You may imagine the ocean condition without the coral reef. It will be empty and seems more dangerous.

7. As a hiding place for some species of marine living beings

There are some animals that live inside the coral reef only to use it as a place to hide during the days and trying to shows up during the night only to catch its prey. These species of animals are usually predators such as shark, eel, and etc.

8. Nutrient recycling

Another importance of coral reefs to environment is that it helps the nutrient cycling in the ocean. Somehow we do know that the decomposers of the ocean is the organism that is helping the nutrient cycling since it is the one who decomposed the organic materials. Coral reef also manage to have the nutrient and keep it in the soil.

9. Protect the juveniles

Have you ever seen finding nemo the movie? In that movie you will see that nemo’s parents were trying to protect their juveniles inside the anemone so that they will be protected from the shark that feed on its juveniles.

10. Fixing the carbon and nitrogen

There are some importance of nitrogen in marine environment. Not only in the marine environment but also for the plants in the land. In the coral reef exist many microbes that has a role to do this carbon fixing and nitrogen cycling in the ocean.

11. Can help us to discover the climate events in the past

Thanks to our advance technology and education system now we can actually discovered some events that were happened in the past through the coral reef structure. The events might be natural disaster or disease that left a mark in the coral reef.

12. Natural resources of drugs

Another benefits that we can get from coral reef is that it support human’s life because some plants that is living around the coral reef has a great benefits to support health problem.

Taking for example of seaweed, seaweed is used for many things such as in health product and cosmetics product. This has become one of the importance of coral reefs to environment.

13. Purify the water

A natural ways to solve water pollution is by having coral reef in the ocean. You might know that there are a lot of pollution coming into the ocean such as pollutant from the outside or even the animal corpse. Where these things can actually polluting the ocean’s water and it may brings a harmful effect such as the spread of the disease.

14. Breaking down the pollutants

Believe it or not, coral reef actually has a system that can help us to reduce ocean pollution. Even though it is not a big amount of pollution but at least coral reef can help the ocean water away from pollutants. And somehow even though it is only a small amount of pollutant but at least it can be useful to reduce the pollutant in the ocean.

15. Creating soil

You do know that coral reef is actually a living being which is an animal. It also has a life period. When the coral reef died, it will form another thing which is sponge that has a hard structure. And by the time goes by this sponge can decayed and form soil.

16. Keeping the food chain system

Importance of coral reefs to environment is equal with the importance of marine food chain. Since coral reef hold so many role in the ecosystem, the loss of coral reef will distract the food chain since there are also so many living beings that live and rely on coral reef.

17. Erosion control

Waves that is coming from the ocean to the coast may create some problem since it has a strong power to destroy something. Somehow the effect is not only in the land but also beneath the ocean where it can actually destroy the habitat of marine living beings.

When there is nothing can hold or at least decreasing the intensity of this wave power then the sea erosion will happen.

18. Indicator of living being population

Without the coral reef ecosystem, we might never know where is the fish gather. And the fisherman will find difficulties to catch fish and this will surely affect the income of the fisherman. Surely, this will disadvantages those who relies on the ocean as their source of income.

19. Underwater beauty

There are so many color and shape of coral reef beneath the ocean that will pampered your eyes as a diver. This has become one components in the ocean that makes the ocean look more beautiful. The color of the coral reef somehow attract many eyes to see the beauty of coral reef.

20. Attract tourism field

There are so many people that love to go to Indonesia because our country natural destination is still clean and clear. The importance of coral reefs to environment in terms of economy is that it can actually attract many people to come and see the underwater beauty of our oceans. Somehow, when many tourist come to our country this will increase the economy of the country better.

That is all I want to share with you, hopefully this information can be beneficial for you and can increase your awareness towards the ecosystem or environment surround you.

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Stephanie