| Although the Great Barrier Reef is known for its | | | | are very important to scientists, because they can |
| stunning coral species, the life forms of the Great | | | | show historical information about the climate at the |
| Barrier Reef play an important part in its existence. | | | | time these coral lived, such as water temperature and |
| Coral reefs are the habitat of choice for many | | | | rainfall amounts. While there is an abundance of coral |
| different marine life forms. In fact, coral reefs are life | | | | in the Great Barrier Reef, the coral themselves do not |
| forms themselves; made up of millions of small | | | | actually spawn very often, only on a few nights per |
| individual organisms known as coral polyps, coral reefs | | | | year. This accounts for the slow growth of the coral |
| are among some of the largest colonies of living | | | | reef. |
| creatures in the world. The Great Barrier Reef is the | | | | Some of the other important creatures of the Great |
| largest of all of the world's coral reefs. Located in the | | | | Barrier Reef are mollusks. There are over 5000 |
| waters off of the northern coast of Australia, in the | | | | species of mollusk that live on the Reef, with such |
| region known as Queensland, the Great Barrier Reef | | | | exotic mollusks as giant clams taking up residence |
| is home to many different organisms. The many | | | | here. Giant clams are the largest bivalve mollusk in the |
| creatures of the Great Barrier Reef coexist to make | | | | world, and they can grow to over three feet wide and |
| the Reef an important ocean ecosystem. | | | | live for around 70 years! Another mollusk found here is |
| Of course, the most populous creatures of the Great | | | | the cone shell - these can be very poisonous and they |
| Barrier Reef are the coral polyps themselves. Over | | | | shoot their prey with a modified tooth which kills them. |
| 400 species of coral live on the Reef, with the oldest | | | | The biggest creatures of the Great Barrier Reef are, |
| species being the Porities species, which is around | | | | of course, the whales. There are 30 plus species of |
| 1000 years old. Ancient colonies of Porities coral are | | | | whale that live in the Great Barrier Reef area, with |
| about the size of a small room, and this type of coral | | | | both dwarf minke whales (baleen whales) and |
| can grow at the relatively slow rate of about one | | | | humpback whales being frequent visitors during their |
| centimeter a year. The skeletons of the Porities coral | | | | migration periods. |