Coral reef ecosystems is a building that houses thousands of live coral, breeding, growth, shelter from predators attack, and get something to eat a variety of fish and other marine animals. Coral reef ecosystem is unique ecosystems in the tropics, which have high productivity and rich diversity of marine species. Indonesia is one of the world's largest archipelagic country, consisting of 17,508 islands with a long coastline of 81,791 km, has a relatively high biodiversity. Extensive coral reefs in Indonesia today: 42 000 km or 16.5% of the area of coral reefs of the world (255,300 km) and has 590 species, therefore, Indonesia was ranked the 2nd largest after Australia.
for 1 year on average coral growth only reached about 1 cm, so in time it takes 500 years to reach a height of 500cm. Coral is one of the oldest ecosystems on earth.
based classification of ecosystems, coral reefs are animals that do not have a backbone (invertebrates) that includes phyla coleonterata. Coral reefs are symbiotic with animals whose lives zoocantela that attaches to the surface of coral, called polyps, but there are specific characteristics of coral reefs are symbiotic with zoocantela include, among others:
1) Coral Hermatifik, a group of producers of coral reefs, colonies, and the symbiotic denagan zoocantela, and that mengekresikan CaCO3. For example, Acropora sp.
2) Coral Ahermatifik, a group of non-producing coral reefs, solitary, and not bersombiosis with zoocantela, and has the texture of the soft body. For example, Millipora sp.
Determinants of coral growth is usually dominated by small rocks that generally form sub-massive and massive. The wave effect on the change form colonies that live in areas protected from waves, but in general there are 4 predominant factors which influence coral growth forms, namely light, salinity, temperature and pressure of the ocean dynamics.
viewed from the aspect of ecological function of coral, coral reefs serve as a protective beach from pounding waves, storms, and currents of sea water, but this is less so in the note by the coastal communities, especially Indonesia, therefore the majority of coral reefs in Indonesia were damaged region , almost 70% of the total coral reef in Indonesia