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Photograph by Timothy G. Laman
Corals, like this one in Micronesia called a gorgonian sea fan, are made up of tiny creatures called polyps. These polyps clump together, and over a long time they create large, connected colonies called reefs. -
Photograph by Timothy G. Laman
Corals are actually translucent, which means you can see through them. The color you see, like this lime green, comes from algae that live on the coral. -
Photograph by Paul A. Sutherland
These funny-looking creatures in the West Indies are orange cup corals. Corals are very important. They cover less than one percent of the ocean floor, but they support about 25 percent of all animals that live in the ocean. -
Photograph by Timothy G. Laman
The saddled butterfly fish's tiny mouth helps it reach a favorite food: coral. This one is checking out some gorgonian coral off the coast of Palau. -
Photograph by Heather Perry
These fish, photographed in the British Virgin Islands, are called striped grunts. They and thousands of other fish species depend on coral reefs for food and places to hide.
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