Six species of sea turtles come to the reef to breed. These are the green sea turtle, leatherback sea turtle, hawksbill turtle, loggerhead sea turtle, flatback turtle, and the olive ridley. There are two different groups of green sea turtles on the Great Barrier Reef. One group lives in the northern part of the reef and the other in the south. Fifteen species of seagrass attract the dugongs and turtles. They also provide a food and shelter for fish. The most common kinds of seagrasses are "Halophila" and "Halodule".
Saltwater Crocodiles live in mangrove and salt marshes on the coast near the reef. No crocodile nests have been found on the reef. The salt water crocodiles on the reef travel long distances. There are not many living around the reef. Around 125 species of shark, stingray, skates or chimaera live on the reef. About 5,000 species of mollusc live on the reef. These include the giant clam, nudibranchs and cone snails. Forty-nine species of pipefish and nine species of seahorse have been found. Seven species of frogs live on the islands. Also, the Moray eel lives on the bottom, preying on fish.
215 species of birds come to the reef or nest or roost on the islands. This includes 22 species of seabirds and 32 species of shorebirds. These include the white-bellied sea eagle and roseate tern. Most nesting sites are on islands in the northern and southern regions of the Great Barrier Reef. About 1.7 million birds use the sites to breed.
The islands of the Great Barrier Reef have 2,195 known plant species. Three of these do not live anywhere else. The northern islands have 300-350 plants which are woody. The southern islands have 200 plants which are herbaceous. The Whitsunday region has the most plant species placing at 1,141. The plant species are mostly spread by fish
Seventeen types of sea snake live on the Great Barrier Reef. They take about 4 years to become old enough to breed. They usually live on the sea floor. They live in warm waters up to deep. They are more common in the southern part of the reef.
More than 1,500 species of fish live on the reef. These include the clownfish, red bass, red-throat emperor, and several types of snapper and coral trout. There are at least 330 species of sea squirts (ascidians) on the reef. These vary in size from 1 mm-10 cm in diameter. Between 300-500 species of bryozoans live on the reef system. These are small water animals that look like moss, or
branches
Four hundred species of corals, both hard corals and soft corals live on the reef. Most of these spawn, releasing thousands of eggs, in huge events. This spawning is controlled by the rising sea temperatures. This happens in spring, summer and some parts of autumn, as part of the moons lunar cycle, and the day/night diurnal cycle. Reefs in the inner Great Barrier Reef spawn during the week after the full moon in October. Outer reefs spawn in November and December. The common soft corals on the Great Barrier Reef belong to 36 different types. Five hundred species of marine algae or seaweed live on the reef. This includes thirteen types of "Halimeda". These deposit chalky (calcareous) mounds up to 100 metres wide. They have mini-ecosystems on their surface which have been compared to rainforest cover.
A new report, the Reef Outlook Report, says that climate change will cause huge damage to the reef. The report was written by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority. Warmer and more acidic water around the coral reef will slow down calcification, which is how the coral grows and becomes strong. The corals will become bleached (lose their colours) and many species that live on and around the reef will be in danger. The Australian government has already spent AU$325 million to improve the health of the reef in the last two years.
The Reef Outlook Report also warned of other dangers to the reef. These included poor quality water running into the sea from the mainland. This water is polluted with farm insecticides and rubbish from nearby towns. The increasing amount of development on the coast is destroying natural marine and coastal habitats. There is also some damage from fishing.
Missouri Compromise
The Missouri Compromise, also called the Compromise of 1820, was a plan proposed by Henry Clay of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It was signed by President James Monroe and passed in 1820. The agreement was between the pro-slavery and anti-slavery groups in the United States Congress, mostly about the regulation of slavery in the western territories. It admitted Missouri as a slave state to please the South and it also admitted Maine as a free state to please the North. It kept the balance of power in the United States Senate between the free states and slave states. The plan also called for slavery to be banned from the Louisiana Territory north of the parallel 36 degrees 30' north (also known as the Missouri Compromise Line), except inside the borders of the proposed state of Missouri.
Before the agreement, the House of Representatives had refused to accept this compromise and a conference committee was appointed. The United States Senate refused to concur in the amendment, and the whole measure was lost.
During the following session (1819-1820), the House passed a similar bill with an amendment, created on January 26, 1820 by John W. Taylor of New York, allowing Missouri into the union as a slave state. In December, the question had been complicated by the admission in of Alabama, a slave state, making the number of slave and free states the same. Also, there was a bill in passage through the House (January 3, 1820) to admit Maine as a free state.
The Senate decided to connect the two measures. It passed a bill for the admission of Maine with an amendment allowing the people of Missouri to make a state constitution. Before the bill returned to the House, a second amendment was adopted on the motion of Jesse B. Thomas of Illinois, excluding slavery from the Missouri Territory north of the parallel 36°30' north (the southern boundary of Missouri), except within the limits of the proposed state of Missouri.
Peafowl
A peafowl is a bird of the "Phasianide" family. It is a relative of the pheasant.
There are two species of peafowl: the Asiatic peafowl ("Pavo") or the Congo peafowl ("Afropavo congensis"). The Congo peafowl is the only member of the pheasant family that originated outside Asia.
The male peafowl can have up to 150 brightly colored feathers on its tail coverts.
For centuries peafowl have been admired for their beauty and hunted for their meat. Recently peacocks have become more popular in parks and gardens.Peacocks are large, colorful pheasants (typically blue and green) known for their iridescent tails. Distinctive Tail Feathers.
The male peafowls (called peacocks) have long, colorful feathers. Female peafowls (called peahens) have shorter, brown feathers.
They like to eat any kind of green shoots (flowers, veggies, grass etc.) as well as wheat, cracked corn or wild game feed. They can handle freezing temperatures as long as they have a dry perch that is out of the wind and weather. Dry dog and cat chows make excellent winter feed for peafowl, who are omnivores, eating insects, small snakes, lizards, grain, as well as many varieties of greens. They are particularly fond of petunias and similar pot plants, leaving nothing but a small green circle where the stem once emerged from the soil. The birds will learn to come to a specific place at specific times of day to be fed, and a regular light feeding during summer adapts them to coming to the feeding place in winter.
The peafowl is native to southeast Asia, including India and Pakistan. They were brought to Europe long ago, and can acclimatize to colder areas.