Blog #2 Coral Reefs ~ Water, Carbon, and Nitrogen Cycles By Andrea Alcantar

The water cycle is the process by which water on earth goes into the atmosphere and back to the earth again.  The first thing that happens in the water cycle is that when it rains or snows, the rain and snow come from the clouds.  The water then goes into the ground, rivers, lakes, oceans, etc.  After this, evaporation happens, which is when the heat from the sun changes the water changes into gas.  The gas then forms and rises, turning into clouds.  When the water vapor gets too heavy it falls to the ground, which is what rain is.  If the temperature is very cold, then it will not rain, but instead it will snow.  The cycle is then completed, and it starts all over again.  The coral reefs is not affect by the water cycle because the water just evaporates and then turns to gas and back to clouds (“Coral Reefs: Water Cycle”).

            The carbon cycle is the biochemical cycle by which carbon is exchanged among the biosphere, pedosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere of the earth (Harrison).  The main processes of the carbon cycle are photosynthesis and respiration.  Carbon exists in the atmosphere as the compound, carbon dioxide.  It first enters the ecological food web when photosynthesis organisms, such as plants, produce energy for consumers (animals) to feed off of.  Through this process, carbon is passed throughout different organisms (“What is the Carbon Cycle”). 

Respiration is the second step that comes after photosynthesis, because animals breathe in oxygen breath out carbon dioxide.  After the carbon is released, it is then returned to the atmosphere.  The coral reefs are affected by the carbon cycle, because if there were no plants, then animals would not be able to get the carbon that they need to survive.  Also, there would be no way for the carbon to return to the atmosphere (“What is the Carbon Cycle”).

            Nitrogen is the way most of the air we breathe is made.  The way that nitrogen works is by first going through the process of nitrogen fixation.  This process is done because most of the living things can not use nitrogen in the N2 state because it is to stable.  Also, it will not react with our molecules.  One way that nature fixes nitrogen naturally is by lightning.  This is because lightning begins a chain of chemical reactions which result in “fixed” nitrogen, which plants may take up into their roots.  Another way that nature fixes nitrogen naturally is through bacteria (Abboud).     

When the nitrogen is fixed plants can used it, and then primary consumer eats the plants.  This causes the consumer to gain the nitrogen that it needs to survive.  After the primary consumer, the secondary consumer eats the primary consumer.  The second consumer then receives the nitrogen that it needs to survive.  When this whole process is over, the secondary consumer eventually dies off, and its remains are broken up by decomposers.  The decomposers take the organic compounds and the nitrogen cycle continues (Abboud). 

Next, the denitrifying bacteria send nitrogen back up to the atmosphere, and the cycle starts over.  This cycle would not negatively affect coral reefs because coral reefs have plants, jut underwater.  Though the plants are in the ocean, they can still participate in the cycle, keeping the coral reef environment stable (Abboud).

Works Cited

Abboud, Peter. "Nitrogen." Nitrogen. Web. 25 April 2011.

"Coral Reefs: Water Cycle." Abcteach -- Free Printables, Interactives. Web. 25 April 2011.

Harrison, John. “The Carbon Cycle.” Visionlearning. 2003. Web. 25 April 2011.   

“What is the Carbon Cycle?” Oracle ThinkQuest. Education Foundation. Web. 25 April 2011. 

Blog #2 Coral Reefs ~ Symbiotic relationships between organisms By Brandon Carter

Symbiotic Relationships describes the long term or short term relationship between two species.  It is taken from a Greek word syn meaning “with” and biosis meaning “living.  There are five different types of symbiotic relationships and they are Mutualism, Commensalism, Parasitism, Competition, and Neutralism.  These relationships are important to ecosystems because without them most ecosystems would not function correctly (Symbiosis”).

Mutualism is when both the host species and the dependent species are benefited.  One example of Mutualism is when Zooxanthellae benefits from the coral's waste products.  The benefit for the coral is when the Zooxanthellae turns the waste products into substances which help promote the coral's growth ("Examples of Mutualism").

Commensalism is a relationship between two species of organisms, where one species takes advantage of the other without causing the other any harm.  There are many examples of Commensalism that take place within coral reefs, but one that everyone will not forget is an example that comes from Finding Nemo.  Nemo and his father who are clownfish live in sea anemones.  Sea anemones typically capture their prey by paralyzing them with discharged cnidoblasts, but clownfish mucus inhibits the discharge of these cnidoblasts.  Due to the clownfish ability to inhabit the discharge, they benefit by having a protected home.  The sea anemones do not benefit from sheltering of the clownfish though (“Commensalism”).

Parasitism is a symbiotic relationship where the parasite gains benefits at the expense of the host organism.  Most parasites live by feeding off of their host.  For example, Isopods which look like wood lice have a flattened body shape for streamlining against the body of their host.  They use complex sucker-like organs to attach to the body and a set of sharp mandibles.  An interesting adaptation of isopods is their ability to mouth only half their exoskeleton at a time, unlike most crustaceans, which shed their entire exoskeleton at once. Isopods benefit from feeding off their host, but the host does not benefit and can be harmed because of this (Abbott).

Competition occurs between organisms when there are limited resources.  Wherever there is more than one organism that is on the same level in the food web, competition will always occur.  In the coral reef competition starts to occur when it comes to living conditions, and eating conditions.  Many crabs will fight one another for a better living condition or better place to eat (Sharov).  

Lastly is Neutralism, which is a relationship where both the species remain unaffected.  Within the Coral Reef, many of these symbiotic relationships are constantly taking place every day.  One examples of symbiotic relationship in Coral Reefs is that inside the sac of each coral polyo, lives one-celled algae called Zooxanthellae.  The algae gives off oxygen and the other nutrients that the coral polyp needs to live and in return the polyp gives the algae carbon dioxide and the other substances the algae needs ("CORAL REEF SYMBIOSIS - Coral Reefs - Ocean World").

Works Cited

Abbott, Dave. "Parasitim." Symbiosis. May 2000. Web. 25 April 2011.

“Commensalism.” Encyclo. Web. 25 April 2011. "CORAL REEF SYMBIOSIS - Coral Reefs –

Ocean World." Welcome to OceanWorld – Bringing the Ocean to the Classroom. 28

April 2005. Web. 25 April 2011.

"Examples of Mutualism." Christian Brothers University. Web. 25 April 2011.

Sharov, Alexei. “Competition between Species.” MA. 14 April 1997. Web. 25 April 2011.  

“Symbiosis.” User. Web. 25 April 2011.

Blog #2 Coral Reefs ~ Producers, Consumers, Decomposers, Autotrophs, & Heterotrophs By Sydney M.

            Coral reefs are made up of many different types of plants and animals, that all contribute to the reef they live in.  They each eat specific kinds of foods, and they are all resources for each other.  All the plants and animals living in a coral reef cannot survive without one another, and they all play a specific role in keeping a coral reefs environment balanced.    

            Everything in a coral reef is related to one another, whether it is a plant or animal.  The members of a coral reefs community can be separated into the roles of producer, consumer, or decomposer.  They can also be defined as being an autotroph or heterotroph.  A producer is an organism that produces energy through the process of photosynthesis, a consumer is an organism that consumes energy by eating another organism, and a decomposer is an organism that decomposes organic materials.  Each one of these roles is vital in keeping a balanced environment and ecosystem (“The Coral Reef Food Chain”). 

            Primary producers, or autotrophs, are very important because they are the base of a food chain, and all of the energy that other organisms need comes from them (Rose).  In a coral reef, there are three major types of producers which are blue-green algae, seaweed, and reef-building corals.  The reef-building corals have a relationship with tiny plant-like organisms known as zooxanthellae, which live in the tissues of coral.  These organisms make coral reefs producers because the zooxanthellae makes energy through photosynthesis and gives it to the coral.  Overall, you can say that most corals live off of sunlight (“The Coral Reef Food Chain”). 

            After a producer has gone through the process of photosynthesis, it then gets eaten by a consumer.  In a coral reef, there are two main types of primary consumers, which are herbivores and carnivores.  Herbivores are the animals that eat the plants, and carnivores are the animals that eat the animal that has consumed the plant.  Primary consumers that live in a coral reef community are zooplankton, invertebrate larvae, benthic grazers, coral, sea urchins, crabs, green sea turtles, and herbivorous fish.  Some of the secondary consumers that live in a coral reef are plankton feeders, corallivores, and benthic invertebrate feeders (Rose).  In a coral reef environment, there are also many carnivores that eat coral in a coral reef, and they are known as corallivores.  Sea urchins are a good example of a corallivore because it is an herbivore that is also a consumer.  What makes them a consumer is the fact that they are constantly eating seaweed, which helps to maintain the seaweed so it does not overpopulate (“The Coral Reef Food Chain”).   

            After a consumer has died, a decomposer breaks down the dead organism and uses it as energy and other materials for the environment.  One of the main decomposers in a coral reefs environment is bacteria.  Bacteria in the coral reef play a big role in the nitrogen cycle.  A bacterium converts the ammonia into nitrite, and then it converts it into nitrate.  Decomposers are important in coral reef environments because of the great amount of biodiversity.  Also, in a coral reef, scavengers also are decomposers.  Some scavengers are sea cucumbers, snails, crabs, and bristle worms, which all eat the dead or other waste materials (“The Coral Reef Food Chain”).

Works Cited

“The Coral Reef Food Chain.” ThinkQuest. Education Foundation. Web. 24 April 2011.

Rose, Alex. “Coral Reef Ecology.” Coralscience.org. 2009. PDF. 25 April 2011.

Blog #1 Coral Reefs ~ Symbiotic Relationships ~ By Andrea A.

            Symbiotic is taken from a Greek word syn meaning “with” and biosis that means “living: which all together describes the long term or short term relationships between two species. Symbiotic relationship is a biological term used to describe the relationship between two or

more different species of organisms that are interdependent on each other (Alphonse, Marlene).

            There are different types of symbiotic Relationships and there are the following: Mutualism which means that both the host species and the dependent species are benefited. Commensalism is a relationship between two species of organisms where one species take advantage of the other without affecting the other. Parasitism is a symbiotic relationship where the parasite gains benefits at the expense of the host organism. Competition occurs between organisms when there are limited resources. Lastly Neutralism which is a relationship where

both the species remain unaffected (Alphonse, Marlene).

            There are many symbiotic relationships in the Coral Reefs many happen every day each minute. One examples of symbiotic relationship in the Coral Reefs is that inside the sac of each coral polyo lives a one-celled algae called zooxanthellae. The algae gives off oxygen and

the other nutrients that the coral polyp needs to live and in return the polyp gives the algae carbon dioxide and the other substances the algae needs One other example of the symbiotic relationship that happen in the coral reefs are that many of the other plants and animals that live and around the coral reef also have symbiotic relationship. Fish for example that have troublesome parasites allow other fish to pick off the parasites. This is symbiotic relationship because while the parasitic fish get's red rid of the nasty bugs the other fish who helped it gets a free meal (Ocean World).

            One example of Mutualism is when zooxanthellae benefit from the coral's waste products; the benefit for the coral is when the zooxanthellae turns the waste products into substances which help promote the coral's growth. An example of Commensalism is that some shrimp and crabs eat mucus coating, which is dead skin and parasites from the surface of corals. This helps the corals, while at the same time providing subsistence to the shrimp and crabs (Three Symbiotic

Relationships between Animals on a Coral Reef). An example of Endoparasitism relationship is the pearl fish and the sea cucumbers.  The pearl fish is a type of mesoparasite. It detects chemicals given off by the sea cucumber and enters the sea cucumber when it participates in gas exchange and breaths in water. The sea cucumber attempts to eject the pearl fish by expelling most of their digestive tract out through their anus. This can be detrimental for the sea cucumber (Symbiosis on the Coral Reef).

            These are a few symbiotic relationships that happen in the Coral Reef but there are many more of them. Some of these relationships are done because of the coral reefs, so if the reefs are no more, most of these relationships will disappear because of the reefs not being there.

 Works Cited

Alphonse, Marlene. "Symbiotic Relationships Examples." Buzzle Web Portal: Intelligent Life on the Web. Web. 14 Apr. 2011.

"CORAL REEF SYMBIOSIS - Coral Reefs - Ocean World." Welcome to OceanWorld - Bringing the Ocean to the Classroom. Web. 14 Apr. 2011.

"Google Images." Google. Web. 14 Apr. 2011.

"Symbiosis on the Coral Reefs (final)." Hays Cummins' Home Page: Ecology, Marine Biology,     Coral Reefs & Rainforests, Weather, Other Courses, Vita. Web. 14 Apr. 2011.

"Three Symbiotic Relationships between Animals on a Coral Reef? - Yahoo!7 Answers." Yahoo!7 Answers - Ask Questions & Get Answers On Any Topic! Web. 14 Apr. 2011.

Blog #1 Coral Reefs ~ Biotic and Abiotic factors ~ By Brandon C.

Think about different factors of your life that you think you can’t live without then think about factors that you really can’t live without; these factors would be your Abiotic and Biotic factors.  Abiotic and Biotic factors play a major role in where species live in what different types of ecosystems.  Abiotic factors are essentially non-living components that affect the living organisms of the freshwater community (Biotic and Abiotic Factors).  For example the temperature, soil, surroundings, etc.  The Abiotic Factor determines wither or not a certain organism can live in a particular ecosystem, this is also known as the tolerance range (Biotic and Abiotic Factors).  Some different Abiotic factors that affect Coral Reefs are water temperature, salinity and PH of water, depth, amount of sunlight, and oxygen levels (Biology).  If the Abiotic factors of a certain area are not the way the Coral Reef likes then they will not grow in that area.  Since human kind is polluting the ocean, atmosphere, and land; many of these Abiotic factors are less and less tolerated.

Biotic factors are created by a living thing or any living component within an environment in which the action of the organism affects the life of another organism (Biotic and Abiotic Factors).  An example of this would be an organism migrating from its original ecosystem to another that provides more food supply.  Some Biotic factors that would affect a Coral Reef would be Density of zooplankton and living coral polyps, and population of living organisms in the water (Biology).  Without these biotic factors the coral reef would not properly populate that area and would be forced to migrate to another area.

            Over all if Biotic and Abiotic factors are contaminated then there will be either mass extinction or mass repopulation.  These factors are basically living conditions that you are vital to your health.  In nature if there is not enough food or shelter for and organism the organism will die or migrate.  This is important because the human race is polluting different ecosystems causing extinction, and if coral reefs went extinct then it would affect other sea life.  

Work cited

"Biology." Yahooanswers. Yahoo, 14 Apr. 2008. Web. 14 Apr. 2011.

"Biotic and Abiotic Factors." Biology Online. 25 July 2008. Web. 14 Apr. 2011.

H, Beard K., Wang D, and Waite C. "Introduction." Biotic and Abiotic Interaction Experiment. 2004.Web. 14 Apr. 2011.



Blog #1 Coral Reefs ~ Birth rates, Death rates, Emigration, Immigration of populations ~ By Sydney M.

            Coral reefs are not just warm climates with colorful fishes and clear waters.  They are actually one of the main parts to a larger ecosystem.  They are often known as the “rainforests of the oceans,” because of their diverse environments and biological communities.  Since a Coral reef is like a miniature ecosystem, it has many different aspects to it that need to be kept in order for it to be a successful environment (“What Are Coral Reefs?”).

            The Coral reefs environment and population size is kept balanced through the heavy influence made by input and output.  The input is birth and immigration while the output is death and emigration (Brunton).  Recently, there have been many issues surrounding the Coral reefs, due to the fact that corals are beginning to die.  People are trying to help this situation by creating artificial reefs.  This has been affecting the Coral reef’s immigration of population because the fish population is increasing and creating new habitats.  The Coral reef’s emigration of population has also been affected though, because it does not actually increase the fish population.  Instead, it just moves the fish to other locations farther away from their natural habitats.  This is causing the fish population’s death rate to increase because they are easier to catch (“An Introduction to Coral Reefs”). 

            Coral reef fishes go through a process known as recruitment, which is when they add new individuals to the population in order to make it more successful.  The species that shows the most recruitment is usually the one that is highly productive.  For a closed population, the birthrate and death rate rely on the population density, with a small amount of emigration and immigration taking place between local populations.  For an open population, replenishment is dependent on an exterior supply of juveniles.  Overall, birth rates, death rates, emigration, and immigration of populations are all affected by Coral reefs, creating a balanced ecosystem and environment (Jones). 

Works Cited

“An Introduction to Coral Reefs.” NmeaWeb.Org. 7 April 2011. Web. 13 April 2011.

Brunton, Benjamin, and David Booth. “Density- and size-dependent mortality of a setting coral-

reef damselfish.” JSTOR. Web. 13 April 2011.  

Jones, Martha, and Iain McGaw. “Recruitment in Coral Reef Fish Populations.” Regional

Perspectives in Marine Biology. The McGaw-Hill Companies. 2001. Web. 13 April 2011. 

“What Are Coral Reefs?” EPA. United States Environmental Protection Agency. 6 April 2011.

Web. 13 April 2011.