0
Great Barrier Reef
Located in Australia, the Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest reef and encompasses an area of 133,000 square miles.
476 Questions
Is the great barrier reef the largest living thing in the world?
Yes. The Great Barrier Reef has been built by living coral, and is the largest living structure in the world. Being such a massive coral reef off northeastern Australia, it supports a plethora of floral and faunal species, as well as the hundreds of coral species.
What is the light intensity for the Great Barrier Reef?
the great barrier reef gets almost no light when it reaches and when at the top of the water gets a lot
Can you see the great barrer reef from space?
Yes, the Great Barrier Reef is visible from low earth orbit. It is reported to be the only living thing visible from space with the unaided eye. It can be seen from the International Space Station and the Space Shuttle. Further out in space, such as from the moon, it is not visible.
Imagery from satellites is important in determining the extent of coral bleaching occurring on the reef which is threatening the coral. This can be detected from space imagery to a depth of 10m. Maps made from these images can determine the extent and progression of the bleaching.
MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) images taken from space keep watch over the location of coral bleaching on the reef. NASA's Terra and Aqua satellites monitor surface temperature and color. Data from these images appears online within three hours of the satellites' orbit passing over the reef. MODIS imagery discovered that river plumes from Queensland were travelling to the outer reef. Without being able to see the reef from space, scientists had not realised the debris from land traveled so far.
Space shuttle astronauts have also observed and photographed massive algal blooms on the reef which could impact the health of the reef. The reef also has massive seagrass meadows which have also been visible to the astronauts.
Who was the first person to swim in the Great Barrier Reef?
Indigenous Australians have swum around the Great Barrier Reef for around 40,000 years, so we don't know.
The Great Barrier Reef is next to which country?
The Great Barrier Reef is in Australia.
It lies off the Queensland coast.
What is the length of the Great Barrier Reef?
The Great Barrier Reef is the largest coral reef in the world. It is about 2300 kilometres in length, which is the equivalent of about 1,430 miles. Its northern end just south of Papua New Guinea, and its southern end near Lady Elliott Island, northeast of the city of Bundaberg.
The Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area, which comprises more than just the coral reefs, atolls and islands of the Great Barrier Reef, covers around 348,000 sq km (134,363 sq miles) while the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park itself covers around 344,400 sq km.
What is an example of a predator prey relationship in the Great Barrier Reef?
Examples of a Great Barrier Reef food chain can be found at the related link below. The first diagram given is a simple food chain of just three species, while the second diagram is a complex diagram showing the interrelationship of many species.
Do hermit crabs live on the Great Barrier Reef?
Yes, many species of crabs live in the Great Barrier Reef.
When did the great barrier reef become a world heritage site?
Yes. In 1981, the Great Barrier Reef gained international recognition through its inscription on the World Heritage List. The Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area is the world's largest and is one of only a few World Heritage Areas that satisfy all four natural World Heritage Criteria.
Where do dolphins live in the Great Barrier Reef?
Various marine creatures live in the Great Barrier Reef, including turtles, dugong, squid, octopus, sharks, a huge variety of fish, and an enormous range of sea plants.
No person lives in the Great Barrier Reef, as it is primarily comprised of a series of coral reefs and atolls, and much of it is underwater. There are many islands which form part of the Great Barrier Reef, and these are inhabited by people of all sorts of races, usually caucasian.
What States coast is off the Great Barrier Reef?
The Great Barrier Reef is located parallel to the coast of Queensland.
What types of coral are there?
(In the world)
There are over 500,000 species in the 600,000 square miles of coral reefs. Millions of species of fish, eels, sponges, grasses, algae, mollusks, crabs, worms, and other marine animals use reefs as homes or as nurseries for their young. Tons of coral make up the coral reefs. After the coral dies, it leaves its skeletons, made of calcium carbonate, behind. There are three different kinds of reefs: fringing reefs, barrier reefs, and atolls. The reefs that are near shore and are separated from land by low water are called fringing reefs. Reefs that are at least 10 kilometers away from land are called barrier reefs. A circular coral island that is far away from land is called an atoll. Atolls form when coral develops on a volcanic island that has sunk below the water. For any of these reefs to form takes hundreds of years. It may take up to 100 years for an inch of coral reef to grow. hope this has helped you.
What are the damages made by humans to the Great Barrier Reef?
its because the range of humans uses made of the water catchment area adjacent to the great barrier reef,water ,quality ,has declined owing to the sediment and chemical runoff from farming ,and to loss of coastal wetlands which are the natural filters.
How is the Great Barrier Reef damaged?
Fishing is dangerous for the Great Barrier Reef as many rare species of fish are being killed, which one day will become extinct. Furthermore, even just throwing litter into these waters will kill the habitats if the fish and will eventually. I was studying this topic last week in science and my science teacher told me that over the last 20 years, the reef size has gne down by 27% which is down the fact that people are damging it by pollution or fishing. Hope this helps!
Are there sharks living in the Great Barrier Reef?
Shark species in the Great Barrier reef include:
- various species of reef shark (the most common of the sharks in the Great Barrier Reef) such as grey reef shark and whitetip reef shark
- lemon shark
- various species of wobbegong shark
- coral catshark
- leopard shark
- tiger shark
When did the Great Barrier Reef get it name?
The Great Barrier Reef was named by Matthew Flinders, the first explorer to circumnavigate the Australian continent.
The Great Barrier Reef is a coral reef placed into the category of 'barrier reef'. This means that the reef is separated from the coastline due to the water's depth being too deep. The reef was given its name because of the following.
- Great: The Great Barrier Reef is a large and vast coral reef: at 2000km long, it is the largest coral reef in the world.
- Barrier: The Great Barrier Reef is a barrier reef. A barrier reef is one which runs parallel to the shore, separated by a channel of water.
- Reef: The Great Barrier Reef is a coral reef.
How long has Great Barrier Reef lasted?
That depends upon how quickly mankind destroys it. If it is maintained and protected it could last indefinitely.
How to stop damaging the Great Barrier Reef?
There are numerous groups making an effort to help conserve the Great Barrier Reef.
- The Species Conservation Unit monitors certain vertebrate species in the Great Barrier reef and provide specialised advice to minimise human impact and its associated risks on Protected Species.
- Naming and recognition of the Great Barrier Reef in 1981 as a World Heritage Area helps raise public awareness of the need to conserve the reef, as well as enabling laws which specifically help protect the Reef.
- The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority works in assocaition with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Traditional Owner groups to understand how they have managed to conserve the reef yet utilise its resources with minimal impact. Together, these two groups develop and maintain Sea Country Partnerships which will help sustain and conserve the reef.
- Australia is one of the countries of the world implementing a Biodiversity Action Planwhich helps to protect the Great Barrier Reef.
- There are regions along the coast near the Great Barrier Reef where use of chemical and pesticides by farmers is being closely monitored, in light of revelations that the chemicals are damaging the ecosystem of the Reef.
Restrictions in boating, fishing, and various other activities have, increasingly, been put in place, to help protect the Great Barrier Reef from further destruction. Nevertheless, it is still an extremely vulnerable ecosystem, and remains threatened.
What is the name of the ocean or sea around the Great Barrier Reef?
This is the world's largest coral reef, the Great Barrier Reef. It is over 2300 km in length, and the only living organism visible from space. The Great Barrier Reef lies off Australia's northeast coast, in the Coral Sea.
What is the limiting factor for the Great Barrier Reef?
Well, there are a lot of limiting factors, but one I do know is: if there is an over abundance of fish and sea animals, the water will become less clear. Then the bacteria will start to die off, thus, killing the coral reefs, which will mean the fish and other sea life will have to find a different place to live.
A very interesting question indeed.
Who is responsible for protecting the Great Barrier Reef?
The Great Barrier reef is not owned by any commercial entity or private party. However as it is in Australian waters, a significant portion of it has been designated as a marine park by the Australian government, and it is managed by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, a federal division, in collaboration with the Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service, and Queensland Fisheries, which are subdivisions of the Queensland state government.
What is the Great Barrier Reef made of?
The Great Barrier Reef was built by natural means, with years and years of living coral building upon the skeletons of other coral, but in conjunction with a particular type of algae.
The corals that build reefs are not single animals. Coral is made up of colonies comprised of many individual animals called polyps, which join together. Coral polyps are a little like sea anemones, having tentacles that extend outwards, but they are not actually anemones.
Corals which create coral reefs have a symbiotic relationship with algae known as zooxanthellae. This algae, which lives within the tissues of the coral, causes a photosynthetic reaction which enables the polyps to make skeletons about three times faster in the light than in the dark. This means the corals deposit skeletons faster than the environment can remove it, and these skeletons build upon each other over time, creating a coral reef.
