The Biome Post

The Florida Reef

Posted on by biotriadna

 

The Great Florida Reef

 

Florida’s Coral Reef is among the most beautiful, colorful, and lively natural treasures in the United States. It stretches from Dry Tortugas National Park west of Key West to St. Lucie Inlet Preserve State Park east of Jupiter Island. It is the only living coral reef system in the continental United States. The reef is home to thousands of species of aquatic flora and fauna, with numerous migratory fish and waterfowl visiting every year.

A Green Sea Turtle (Chelonia mydas)

 

Diversity…

Florida Reef’s coral structures include barrier reefs, patch reefs, and fringing reefs.

Other structural features include seagrass beds and mangrove-fringed islands.

The waters contain a wide variety of spectacular, unique marine life.

A Sand Diver (Synodus intermedius)

A Queen Angelfish (Holacanthus ciliaris)

 

A Home to Many…

The Florida Reef is home to over a thousand species of aquatic plants and marine animals.

Migratory creatures of all shapes and sizes take up residence in the reef at various times of the year.

Coastal neighbors visit these special waters daily, depending on the reef for their survival.

A Scrawled Cowfish

A Bluestriped Grunt (Haemulon sciurus)

Fragile Habitats

Coral reefs are fragile habitats, susceptible to destruction from climate change, pollution, and overfishing. According to scientists, these important natural resources could disappear within the next century. The loss would not be limited to the coral, but also the countless fish that depend on the coral, and a major portion of the global food supply.

Dead Coral in the Indian Ocean

An Endangered Future

Ongoing efforts to study and learn how to better protect this irreplaceable natural resource are being conducted by scientists, government agencies, and universities. Their efforts today will help the preservation efforts of future generations.
 
 
 

World Ocean Day

 
June 8, 2023

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Nature and the Environment

NatAtEnv was formed by BioTriad Environmental, Inc. to provide entertaining informative media while keeping the wonders of nature in the public eye.

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The Biome Post highlights the most fascinating facets of the natural world, taking us underwater, under snow, underground, and undercover, for the most remarkable life as we know it.

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