Name |
Image |
Location |
Coordinates |
Notes |
African coral reefs |
|
Red Sea to Madagascar |
0°03′05″S 50°50′46″E / 0.051377°S 50.846055°E / -0.051377; 50.846055 |
Consists of numerous coral reefs, mostly along the east and south coast of Africa. The reefs faces multiple threats such as untreated sewage, industrial run-offs, pollutants, and sediment flowing from rivers. Also, the 1997/98 El Nino destroyed 90% of the coral. |
Angria Bank |
|
Off the coast of Vijaydurg, Maharashtra, India |
16°26′N 72°02′E / 16.43°N 72.03°E / 16.43; 72.03 |
|
Apo Reef |
|
Mindoro Strait, Philippines |
|
Ths is the Philippines' largest reef and the world's second-largest contiguous coral reef system. |
Arrecifes de Cozumel National Park |
|
Cozumel, Mexico |
20°10′25″N 87°00′46″W / 20.1737°N 87.0129°W / 20.1737; -87.0129 |
Part of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System |
Bar Reef |
|
Kalpitiya peninsula, Sri Lanka |
8°13′48″N 79°26′24″E / 8.2300°N 79.4400°E / 8.2300; 79.4400 |
This coral reef has more biodiversity than in any of the waters of India. It is one of only a few prisine systems in Sri Lanka. |
Belize Barrier Reef |
|
Belize |
17°11′08″N 87°19′26″W / 17.1856°N 87.324°W / 17.1856; -87.324 |
This is the second biggest coral reef system on Earth, the largest being the Great Barrier Reef. It is a around 1/3 of the 900-km-long Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System. |
Benares Shoals |
|
Peros Banhos atoll, northern Chagos Archipelago |
5°09′S 71°24′E / 5.15°S 071.40°E / -5.15; 071.40 |
|
Coral Triangle |
|
Mainly Indonesia |
3°58′13″N 134°49′10″E / 3.970166°N 134.819424°E / 3.970166; 134.819424 |
Called the "Amazon of the seas", this is a large area defined within a triangular area in the waters of Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Solomon Islands and Timor-Leste. |
Daintree Reef |
|
Coral Sea, Queensland, Australia |
16°01′58″S 145°26′06″E / 16.032856°S 145.434958°E / -16.032856; 145.434958 |
Named after geologist and photographer Richard Daintree, this system is adjacent to the Daintree Rainforest. |
Darwin Mounds |
|
Off the northwest coast of Scotland |
59°27′N 7°08′W / 59.45°N 7.13°W / 59.45; -7.13 |
Located around 1,000 m (3,280 feet) below the surface, this system consists of a big field of sand mounds. |
Filippo Reef |
|
450 km east of Starbuck Island in the Pacific Ocean |
5°18′S 151°30′W / 05.30°S 151.50°W / -05.30; -151.50 |
|
French Frigate Shoals |
|
Northwestern Hawaiian Islands |
23°26′44″N 166°50′46″W / 23.4456°N 166.846°W / 23.4456; -166.846 |
This is a 32-km-long, crescent-shaped reef maintained by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service as a field station within the Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife Refuge. |
Great Barrier Reef |
|
Coral Sea, Queensland, Australia[1] |
18°10′16″S 147°25′12″E / 18.1710°S 147.4200°E / -18.1710; 147.4200 |
Known as the largest in the world |
Isla Pérez |
|
Gulf of Mexico |
22°14′02″N 89°25′12″W / 22.2340°N 89.4200°W / 22.2340; -89.4200 |
|
Kingman Reef |
|
North Pacific Ocean |
6°14′N 162°15′W / 6.23°N 162.25°W / 6.23; -162.25 |
Roughly triangular in shape, and mostly uninhabited |
Lansdowne Bank |
|
Coral Sea |
20°21′S 160°18′E / 20.35°S 160.30°E / -20.35; 160.30 |
This is one of the biggest banks on Earth. |
Lyra Reef |
|
Papua New Guinea |
1°27′S 153°12′E / 1.45°S 153.20°E / -1.45; 153.20 |
|
Maro Reef |
|
Northwestern Hawaiian Islands |
25°24′54″N 170°35′24″W / 25.415°N 170.590°W / 25.415; -170.590 |
This reef is named after the ship Maro, captained by Captain Joseph Allen who discovered the reef in 1820. |
Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System |
|
From the Yucatán Peninsula to Honduras |
18°20′38″N 87°25′18″W / 18.343938°N 87.421764°W / 18.343938; -87.421764 |
Also known as the Great Mayan Reef or Great Maya Reef, this is a World Heritage Site. |
Mexico Rocks |
|
Ambergris Caye, Belize |
18°03′01″N 87°33′19″W / 18.05021°N 87.555174°W / 18.05021; -87.555174 |
This area consists mainly of boulder corals and comprises about 100 Holocene patch reefs in a cluster on a ridge made of Pleistocene limestone. |
Miami Terrace Reef |
|
Florida, United States |
25°27′N 79°33′W / 25.45°N 79.55°W / 25.45; -79.55 |
This is a deep reef system that lies at 200 to 600 meters below sea level. |
Minami-Tori-shima |
|
Japan |
24°10′16″N 153°35′06″E / 24.1712°N 153.5850°E / 24.1712; 153.5850 |
|
Minerva Reefs |
|
Fiji and Tonga |
23°23′S 178°32′W / 23.38°S 178.54°W / -23.38; -178.54 |
|
Miri-Sibuti Coral Reef National Park |
|
Sarawak, Malaysia |
4°11′N 113°31′E / 4.19°N 113.51°E / 4.19; 113.51 |
This is a protected area and popular dive site. |
New Caledonia Barrier Reef |
|
New Caledonia |
20°14′39″S 164°20′09″E / 20.2443°S 164.3359°E / -20.2443; 164.3359 |
This is a double-barrier coral reef, and the second-longest on Earth, the longest being the Belize Barrier Reef. |
Ningaloo Coast |
|
Western Australia |
22°20′04″S 113°29′01″E / 22.3345°S 113.4837°E / -22.3345; 113.4837 |
A World Heritage Site, this reef is noted for whale sharks. |
North East Reef |
|
Western Australia |
28°15′05″S 113°29′03″E / 28.2513°S 113.4841°E / -28.2513; 113.4841 |
|
Palancar Reef |
|
Cozumel, Mexico |
20°17′48″N 87°01′06″W / 20.296685°N 87.018439°W / 20.296685; -87.018439 |
A popular diving location, this is part of the Arrecifes de Cozumel National Park. |
Qixingyan (Taiwan) |
|
Pingtung County, Taiwan |
21°27′12″N 120°29′34″E / 21.453198°N 120.492894°E / 21.453198; 120.492894 |
This is a shallow system with parts being visible at low tide. Many shipwrecks have occurred here. |
Reunion Island's coral reef |
|
Madagascar |
21°05′06″S 55°13′17″E / 21.0851°S 55.2214°E / -21.0851; 55.2214 |
Threatend in recent times by an increase in human exploitation as well as pollution |
Røst Reef |
|
Lofoten, Norway |
67°29′02″N 12°01′08″E / 67.483951°N 12.018849°E / 67.483951; 12.018849 |
This is the largest Lophelia reef known, and the biggest known deep-water coral reef system. |
Scorpion Reef |
|
Yucatán, Mexico |
22°13′33″N 89°24′21″W / 22.2258°N 89.40578°W / 22.2258; -89.40578 |
This reef is part of the Campeche Bank archipeligo. |
Sha`b Abu Nuhas |
|
Northern Red Sea |
27°34′01″N 33°55′01″E / 27.567°N 33.917°E / 27.567; 33.917 |
Considered a hazard to ships, this is a popular diving site. |
South Sentinel Island |
|
Andaman Islands |
10°35′02″N 92°07′54″E / 10.5840°N 92.1318°E / 10.5840; 92.1318 |
|
Sula Reef |
|
Sør-Trøndelag, Norway |
|
This reef is composed of Lophelia pertusa coral. |
Tubbataha Reef |
|
Sulu Sea |
8°33′N 119°33′E / 8.55°N 119.55°E / 8.55; 119.55 |
This reef system contains a very high density of different species and is designated a World Heritage Site. |