How Does Algae Affect The Destruction Of Coral Reefs

Many organisms have a symbiotic relationship with coral, the three major ones being fish, algae, and dinoflagellate. Fish live inside of the coral reefs, and in return the coral gives it shelter. The fish will also eat excess algae on coral to help keep the coral healthy. The fish are also known as tertiary consumers in this situation (Payment 30). Algae is an organism that kills and protects coral, resulting in a rather interesting symbiotic relationship. Algae is not beneficial to young coral, and in most cases will end up killing the coral. However, symbiotic algae is key to a healthy adult coral reef. If algae builds up on coral, it will help to protect the coral from other forces that could damage it. The downside of this is that if too much algae builds up on the coral, then the coral has not oxygen to breathe. Thus if the fish do

The destruction of coral reefs is a result of many things, such as pollution, overfishing, ship travel, bad methods of fishing, global warming, and underwater mining. Almost all studies show this decline of these reefs globally, so this decline is happening everywhere (Falk et al). Over the past 50 years, the top 1,000 feet of the ocean have become 0.66º hotter from warming. As water get warmer, it expands, making coral reefs deeper and farther away from the sun they need to thrive (Payment 32). Pollution from trash, factory by products, and cyanide fishing kill many reefs and the fish around them. Fishing practices that use nets also can kill coral and the animals surrounding them (Hinrichsen). Non anthropogenic reasons also contribute to the decline of reefs, excess algae and jumps in temperature can harm coral. If too much algae build up on coral, the coral can’t breathe and it dies (Hinrichsen). Coral is very sensitive, so jumps in temperature by only a few degrees can cause mass destruction to these reefs from bleaching and other sources of heat induced harm