DISTRIBUTION OF CORAL REEFS 

 THROUGHOUT THE WORLD 



CORAL REEFS are found throughout the West 

 Indies, forming barriers just beneath the sur- 

 face of the water, where they are a hidden 

 menace to navigation. They are most beauti- 

 ful to look at on a calm day especially if one 

 is able to peer down at them through a glass-bottomed 

 bucket or through the glass faceplate of a shallow water 

 diving helmet. Some form large boulders covered with 

 intricate patterns traced in green and gold. Others form 

 tree-like growths, fancifully resembling antlers of deer 

 or elk. Smaller corals grow between these and appear as 

 multicolored flowers, among which brightly hued tropi- 

 cal fish wander. Nevertheless, on other days, when 

 the ocean is no longer calm, the sharp edges of the coral 

 lie in wait for the careless navigator to rip through the 

 hull of his vessel. The West Indian reefs have a plentiful 

 record of wrecks, many dating back to the days of the 

 Spanish treasure fleets. Although hidden today by a 

 heavy overgrowth of coral some of these fabulous prizes 

 still show their presence by an occasional doubloon or 

 gold ornament washed up on the beach. 



Corals are by no means restricted to the West Indies. 

 Certain small corals are present in every ocean in 

 shallow depths while others are found in great depths 

 far from shore. They may even be dredged from the 

 cold seas lying within the Arctic and Antarctic Circles. 

 In the deep water of the Norwegian Fjords, for instance, 

 a delicate branching coral with orange colored fleshy 



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