Abiotic coral reef materials.
An abiotic feature that is found throughout a coral reef at all times is water. Water is the main abiotic feature as it helps support the marine life's bodies to float, swim and live. Without water, the weight of the marine life will collapse by gravity. Gravity is also another abiotic feature as it helps marine life to stay under water. As well as water and gravity, oxygen is also an abiotic feature that help marine life as well as normal land life needs to survive. Oxygen is found in the water which is what the marine life uses by passing through the gills and take the oxygen to the lungs. Sodium chloride is also found in the ocean (salt). This is when salt in rivers is left behind when water is evaporated and is then increased by rainfall, this then travels to the ocean and increases the pH level in the ocean. This is why oceans are saltier than rivers (fun fact). Another abiotic feature found in coral reefs are sometimes, shipwrecks that have sunk years ago and grown coral over them, this then creates a home for the living organisims. Unfortunately, their are some harmful abiotic materials, there is rubbish and trash pulled in from the shore or dumped by people at sea, these materials soon end up in the coral reef organisms food chain and can cause serious damage or death to them. As well as rubbish, oil is another abiotic hazard. It sticks to marine life, chokes them and is hard to clean up from the sea and shore. This is another reason why our reefs are dying.
Biotic coral reef organisims.
A biotic organisim is anything that is alive and uses abiotic features to survive. There are thousands of organisims that live in coral reef, many of which are very big and some are very small. The largest biotic organisim is coral, it is frequently growing, it is a home to many marine life and is under threat. The smallest biotic organisim is plankton, it is so small, we need a microscope to see them in perfect detail. As well as this, a coral reef is also the home of fish, sharks, moray eels, octopuses, stingrays, plankton and krill. However there are about 10-over 100 different species of each biotic organisim. Biotic organisims not only have different species in there own species set, but they can also have different features, from teeth, beaks, spines, poison, camouflage and speed. One main thing that fish have is two large sets of muscle. The red muscle which helps with short burst of fast energy and white muscles that helps The organisim have a relaxed slow cruiseing motion. As well as this, fish, sharks and other organisims that are in the same classification as these creatures, have two valves in their heart unlike a human who has four, this helps blood move better and at a slower rate as it oxygen also goes through the gills making it rich for the body. Water however, is hypotonic, this means it stays in the body and is not let out through osmosis.