Cyanobacteria N-fixing Very efficient nutrient recyclers etc. Development of Coral Reefs Darwin got the idea of evolution through watching the coral reefs- large new volcanic islands developed fringing reef attached to shoreline as shoreline erodes lagoon forms, as island disappears an atoll is formed. Sometimes reef patches in lagoon that separate algal turfs on seaward side and sandy lagoon on the land side.
Corals grow below algal ridge lagoon bottom make of rubble from algal ridge.
Calerpine peppery taste used as spice. Rocky Shores rocks provide substrate algae dominated both Atlantic and Pacific. Causes liver to hemorrhage in wildlife, hepatitis and skin irritation in humans common in eutrophic lakes. People add nutrients to fresh water contaminating it so they can get more fish out of it etc. Red algae has a more efficient form of RuBisCO, experiments in gene splicing into terrestrial crops for more efficient growing grains.