me foodmanufactured by algae that live in the polyps own tissue. These algae produce chemicalsthat help the coral animals secrete their limestone skeletons. Coral reefs grow only inwater with enough light for photosynthesis to occur in the algae.Coral polyps reproduce either form eggs or by budding. Small, knoblike growthscalled buds appear on the body of an adult polyp, or on the connecting sheet from tome totime. These buds grow larger, separate form the parent, and begin to deposit their ownlimestone in the colony making it grow. New colonies of coral polyps form when theadult polyps of an old colony produce eggs. These eggs grow into tiny organisms thatswim away. The animal than settles to the sea bottom and begins to form new colonies by budding....
