soft corals
Bendable reef polyps
Soft corals are marine animals of the order Alcyonacea, distinguished from hard corals by their lack of a rigid calcium carbonate skeleton.
They have flexible, fleshy bodies supported by internal structures called sclerites.
Found primarily in tropical and subtropical waters, soft corals include sea fans, sea whips, and leather corals: The reef was carpeted with soft corals swaying in the current.
Fixed aquatic invertebrates
- sea fansBranching colonial marine invertebrates
- symbiosisInterspecies biological interdependence
- reefUnderwater rock or coral formation
- benthicOf the sea bottom
sessile · colonial · filter feeding · spicules · stolons · calcification · bioluminescence · chemical defense
Light and soft-textured
- flowingMoving continuously onward
- branchingSplitting into separate directions
- arborescentResembling a tree
- encrustingForming a hardened covering
pulsing · swaying · translucent · velvety · plush · undulating · fan-shaped · delicate
Aquarium mimicking coral ecosystems
- fraggingKilling one's superior officer
- aquascapingDesigning underwater tank environments
- water flowMovement of liquid mass
- lightingArt of illuminating spaces
Sheltered coastal shallows
- substrateUnderlying supporting material
- currentsDirectional flows of movement
- sedimentationParticles settling in liquid
- water columnVertical section of sea
seagrass beds · mangrove · Indo-Pacific · Caribbean · Red Sea · Great Barrier Reef · rocky outcrop · tide pool
Science of ancestral relationships
- cladisticsClassification by common descent
- systematicsScience of classifying organisms
- identificationEstablishing who someone is
- classificationSystematic grouping by traits
polyps
Fixed aquatic invertebrates
- sea fansBranching colonial marine invertebrates
- symbiosisInterspecies biological interdependence
- reefUnderwater rock or coral formation
benthic · sessile · colonial · filter feeding · spicules · stolons · calcification · bioluminescence · chemical defense · spawning
feathery
Light and soft-textured
- flowingMoving continuously onward
- branchingSplitting into separate directions
- arborescentResembling a tree
encrusting · pulsing · swaying · translucent · velvety · plush · undulating · fan-shaped · delicate · gossamer
reef tank
Aquarium mimicking coral ecosystems
- fraggingKilling one's superior officer
- aquascapingDesigning underwater tank environments
- water flowMovement of liquid mass
lagoon
Sheltered coastal shallows
- substrateUnderlying supporting material
- currentsDirectional flows of movement
- sedimentationParticles settling in liquid
water column · seagrass beds · mangrove · Indo-Pacific · Caribbean · Red Sea · Great Barrier Reef · rocky outcrop · tide pool · drop-off
phylogenetics
Science of ancestral relationships
- cladisticsClassification by common descent
- systematicsScience of classifying organisms
- identificationEstablishing who someone is