Does temperature promote the development of coral reefs?
Yes. The reef building corals require warm temperatures for their survival. They grow well at temperatures greater than 20°C and can thrive even at 35°C as in the Red Sea, Persian Gulf or our Gulf of Kachchh. Some of them occur sometimes at low temperatures, even down to 10°C, but they do not form reefs. It is because of this preference for warm waters, that the greatest number of corals is found in the tropical belt, with a decrease towards the subtropical seas. 15. Are there other conditions that effect coral growth? Yes. Several but at least 3 of them are important: (a) Firm substratum to settle Corals need natural surfaces like rocks, coral stones or even molluscan shells to settle and grow. We rarely find profuse coral settlement on man-made structures like jetties or tetrapods though metallic structures like hulls of sunken boats and ships favour coral settlements. (b) Salinity Seawater contains 35 g of dissolved salts per liter whereas freshwater has only a few mg of dissolved s
