| Brain coral |
| Lobophyllia
sp. |
These corals get their common name from the
grooves and channels on their surfaces that look like the folds of the
human brain. There's more than one kind of "brain coral"—several species
from two different families of corals share the name—but all help build
coral reefs.
| nutrients provided by algae
growing in their tissues; small, drifting animals |
| colonies can grow 6 or more feet
(1.8 m) high |
| Red Sea through the Indo-Pacific
to southern Japan |
| brain corals and other corals,
sea anemones, jellies; Phylum Cnidaria, Order Madreporaria, Family
Mussidae |
| Coral reefs around the world are
in danger. Silt (fine soil) smothers coral when it washes off the
land from farm fields, roads and building sites. More towns and
resorts near shore mean more sewage, oil and chemicals in the water.
|
| While staghorn corals grow rapidly to gain
new territory, slow-growing brain corals rely on brawn. They hold
their ground by being solid and strong enough to withstand the
storms that pound more delicate corals to rubble. |
|
