Why is the great barrier reef significant
Why are coral reefs so important? | Natural History Museum
under the waves all over the world there
are spectacular ecosystems corals are
tiny little animals are together can
form huge reefs spanning hundreds of
kilometres teeming with diverse life so
let's take a look the oldest corals
lived four hundred and fifty million
years ago as long before dinosaurs who
clock-in from around two hundred and
forty million years ago the first
members of the human family only
appeared around seven million years ago
thousands of species can be found living
on one coral reef for example the Great
Barrier Reef contains over four hundred
species of coral 1,500 species of fish
four thousand species of mollusk and six
species of turtle
and because of this amazing biodiversity
we're starting to discover that there is
a lot we can learn from coral coral
extracts have been used to develop
treatments for asthma arthritis cancer
and heart disease it's been estimated
that coral reefs provide a global value
of five point seven trillion pounds each
year including from fishing and tourism
more than 500 million people worldwide
depend on reefs for food jobs and
coastal protection the riches in coral
reefs can reduce wave energy by up to 95
percent
providing crucial protection from
threats such as tsunamis if we were to
travel back in time 40 million years the
most diverse place on earth was
somewhere between where London and Paris
are now today the Coral Triangle in
Southeast Asia holds that claim and
until the 13th of September in London
the Wonder and diversity of these
spectacular underwater ecosystems are on
display at the Natural History Museum's
major exhibition coral reefs secret
cities of the sea
dive in and find out why coral reefs are
so important and how their future is
being secured immerse yourself in life
beneath the waves with a live aquarium
virtual dive experience are more than
250 specimens to book exhibition tickets
click here or just pop in
