THE GREAT BARRIER REEF.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVIII, Issue 49, 27 February 1937, Page 6 (Supplement)

THE GREAT BARRIER REEF.

BEAUTY OF THE LIV'NG CORAL. FOJ! over 1200 miles the Croat Barrier Reef lies along the* roast of Queensland, at times grow ill" ch*se up 111 tlie shore and then again stretching far out to t!ie ocean. Tliere grow rainlxtw-tinted corals in an endles.s diversity of form. The colours are not garish, lmt lovely pastel shades, ''orals grow in many regions of the world, lnit the reefbuilding varieties require two conditions. The sea water must lie pure — quite free from mud, and it must be of a certain temperature. The coral polyps cannot live at a temperature below tiS degrees I'ahron lleit. I he coral polyps are minute creatines of simple structure resembling -ca anemones. Imt they differ from t hem in that they have the capacity of extracting carbonate of lime join their food and using it for the stony structures in which they live, l.xamine a piece of coral and you v. ill see that it is pitted by hundreds of little poll's. When alive each outhouses u polyp. The tiny creatures protrude their slender tentacle.- from the opening, spreading them like the petals ot a flower. When prev approaches it is struck by poisonous, stinging tentacles. The p-iison paralyses the victim, which is then enfolded by the tentacles and con•unied. Through countless ages the coral has grown up from the sea 'bed like many-branched trees, with ever the living creatures at the ti|is of the branches as it grows towards the -urface. And in these delicately tinted forests live hundreds of other <-ea creatures, for e\cr moving about and adding variety and gay ~|da-he- of colour to the marine scenery. The wonderful beauty of th:- living reef and the great variety of life there is a source of never-ending amazement and delight to the traveller and the naturalist. The water itself is beautifully clear and sparkling, and in the sunlight it shows bright blue in the distance and sap green below the boats that pass among the reefs and shoals. I lie outer barrier is not a complete wall of coral rising out of the sea, but a series of reefs of various sizes and shapes cut by numerous channels leading to the open sea. In addition there is a maze of reefs nearer the shore. -Many brilliantly coloured fishes make their homes among the corals —green, brown, purple, red and yellow. Many of them are. very small, but not so small as to run anv risk of becoming the victims of the grecdv coral polyps. Their bodies are strangely shaped and patterned like brocade or rich Oriental silks. Some have fins that float about them like delicate filmy drajn»ry. One great curiosity of the reef is the walking fish that would drown if it were held too long under the water. It lives mostly in shallow pools, but is often found with only its tail in the water. Its gill chambers are not like those of other fish, but resemble more the lungs of land

creatures. It will romp out of the water, too. ami m> ve about on dry land—climb a tree, perhaps. using its Jins like lit fie legs. The eyes of the walking lish protrude like periseopes from a submarine, and u> eitait them it turns them right inside its head. On the Barrier Keef is found the largest shellfish in the world, the giant clam, weighing about a quarter of a ton. J liis massive creature feeds upon the microscopic life that it sieves from the water that it draws into its mouth. Ihe hermit crabs do not. as their name suggests, lead secluded lives, lint collect in great numbers on the reef. Lvery crab as lie moves about carries a shell with him. The reason is that, though the body, head and nippers are heavily armoured, the tail is covered only by a tender skin. To prevent the" ta'il from being injured, the crab selects an einptv shell and backs tail first into it. Naturally as lie growes the shell becomes tight and he must search for a new one. Often lie will do battle with a fellow crab for his tail protector. The reef is the home of the trcpang. or beche-de nicr. It lias a clumsy, ungainly body, from the end of which protrudes a thick fringe of tentacles. It is always scooping in Ihe coral sand for food. Jt has an odd way of dealing with its enemies. Whenever frightened or attacked, it disgorges its digestive organs and leaves tlu 1 enemy to consume thein while it makes it., escape. The creatine then era wis away to some sedudid place to grow-a new inside. U« ( lie dc-mer is esteemed a great delicacy by ( hinese. whose luggers plv in and out among the waters of the reef lishing for this sea slug. 1 hey are not the only fishermen, ktlible varieties ot lish are cau«ht by com inertia I iishernien of several races, including British. Ihe Australian natives of the North Queensland coast are expert at en telling the great turtle of the.se waters. ,\ native will dive under the water in search of his victim. If one doe* come along he leaps rpiiekh' mi to its back and, gripping the she'll just near the head, pulls hard. The turtle immediately rises to the surface, and will remain there so long as a firm hold is kept. Bv steady pulling, he can manage to get his catch ashore or into a boat. If the hold is slackened, however, the turtle dives again and finds refuge in the depths where man cannot hope to follow. Anyone wishing to study the beauty of the coral n f t close quarters can don a pair of the glasses that the native pearl divers use and go down into one of the deep coral pools near the etlge of the reef. The beauty of the spectacle makes one gasp anil rise spluttering to the surface for a fresh- supply of air. There are vivid anemones, glowing sea-stars anil bright tinted crabs. Out from a dim coral cavern comes a shoal of glistening lish. Among the branches of the coral dart others like gorgeous tropical butterflies. It is truly the place to delight the heart and eye of any beauty lover.