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Fringing reef

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Four Kinds of Coral Reef

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How the Great Barrier Reef Formed | Great Barrier Reef

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Coral Reefs 101 | National Geographic

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How Coral Reefs are formed - labelled diagram and explanation

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Fringing Coral Reef

A fringing reef is one of the four main types of coral reef recognized by most coral reef scientists. It is distinguished from the other main types in that it has either an entirely shallow backreef zone (lagoon) or none at all. If a fringing reef grows directly from the shoreline the reef flat extends right to the beach and there is no backreef. In other cases, fringing reefs may grow hundreds of yards from shore and contain extensive backreef areas with numerous seagrass meadows and patch reefs.
    • Structure 

    • Location of fringing reefs 

    • Reef growth 

    • Effect of tectonic activity 

    • Threats 

    • Species diversity