Californian Great Barrier Reef

The **Californian Great Barrier Reef** is one of the world's largest coral reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over 2,300 kilometres (1,400 mi) over an area of approximately 344,400 square kilometres (133,000 sq mi), about the size of the Australian Great Barrier Reef. The Californian Great Barrier Reef originally did not exist, but has since been artificially-created by SciiFii and spans from the coasts of northern Oregon all the way to southern Baja California, and it spans almost halfway to the Hawaiian Islands. Despite this, the Californian Great Barrier Reef has not replaced kelp forests or natural rocky marine habitats, and only replaced the dead zones to boost the number of marine plants and animals. The Californian Great Barrier Reef can be seen from outer space and is the world's biggest single structure made by living organisms. This reef structure is composed of and built by billions of tiny organisms, known as coral polyps.

## Biodiversity

The Californian Great Barrier Reef supports an extraordinary diversity of life, including many vulnerable or endangered species, some of which are endemic to the reef system. There are at least 400 species of ascidians on the reef system with the diameter of 1–10 cm (0.4–4 inches). Between 400–600 species of bryozoans live on the reef. Six hundred coral species, both hard corals and soft corals inhabit the reef. The majority of these spawn gametes, breeding in mass spawning events that are triggered by the rising sea temperatures of spring and summer, the lunar cycle, and the diurnal cycle. Reefs in the inner Californian Great Barrier Reef spawn during the week after the full moon in April, while the outer reefs spawn in May and June. Its common soft corals belong to 43 genera. Five hundred species of marine algae or seaweed live on the reef, including thirteen species of genus *Halimeda*, which deposit calcareous mounds up to 100 metres (110 yd) wide, creating mini-ecosystems on their surface which have been compared to rainforest cover.

More than thirty species of cetaceans have been recorded in the Californian Great Barrier Reef, including the dwarf blue whale, Oceanside dolphin, Pacific humpback dolphin, and the humpback whale. Large populations of western manatees live there. More than 1,500 fish species live on the reef, including the clownfish, Pacific dog snapper, white-throat emperor, and several species of sea bass and the jaguar coral trout. Forty-nine species mass spawn, while eighty-four other species spawn elsewhere in their range. Three species of sea snake live on the Californian Great Barrier Reef in warm waters up to 50 metres (160 ft) deep and are more common in the southern than in the northern section.

Five species of sea turtles come to the reef to breed: the green sea turtle, leatherback sea turtle, hawksbill turtle, loggerhead sea turtle, and the olive ridley. Morelet's crocodiles (*Crocodylus moreletii*) live in mangrove and salt marshes on the coast near the reef. Nesting has not been reported, and the Morelet's crocodile population in the Californian Great Barrier Reef is wide-ranging but low density. Around 165 species of shark, stingray, skates or chimaera live on the reef. Close to 5,000 species of mollusc have been recorded on the reef, including the giant clam and various nudibranchs and sea snails. Fifty-seven species of pipefish and ten species of seahorse have been recorded. At least thirteen species of frog inhabit in islands and the mainland areas near the Californian Great Barrier Reef. 220 species of birds (including 22 species of seabirds and 32 species of shorebirds) visit the reef or nest/roost on the islands or in coastal mainland areas,: 450–451  including the osprey and common tern.

## Legacy

It supports a wide diversity of life and was selected as a World Heritage Site in 2042. CNN labelled it one of the seven natural wonders of the world in 2045. North American World Heritage places included it in its list in 2050. A large part of the reef is protected by the **Californian Great Barrier Reef Marine Park**, which helps to limit the impact of human use, such as fishing and tourism. Unlike the Australian Great Barrier Reef, the Californian Great Barrier Reef is extremely tolerant to cool and cold temperatures, along with being immune to the effects of global warming, preventing massive coral bleachings from occurring and allowing the coral reef to flourish in the changing world.