Overview

Birth of a Coral Island

Nature of Coral

Flowers of the Reef

The Echinoderms

Amazing Defensive Weapon

Turtles of the Reef

Strange Behavior of Reef Crabs

A Deadly Killer

World's Largest Shellfish

Strange Oysters of the Reef

Rare fish of the Coral Seas

Unusual Vegetation

Birds in Millions

Angling Unsurpassed

unusual vegetation

Even the vegetation of the Great Barrier Reef includes some curious anomalies. In two totally different types of trees, the mangrove and the Pandanus, the roots radiate from the trunk several feet above the ground. These roots, known as stilt-roots, form a secure anchorage for trees destined to grow in soft mud or shifting sand. When the trees are dense, the roots may so interlock as to form an impenetrable barrier. The fruit of the Pandanus tree is often referred to as "bread-fruit" because the aborigines frequently pounded it to make a bread of dough-like consistency. It is not unlike a pineapple in shape, and grows to a length of about ten inches.

On some of the coral islands of the Great Barrier Reef, Pisonia trees flourish. They grow to a height of about sixty feet, and bear a light green foliage reminiscent of European rather than Australian trees. The timber of this tree is very brittle, and if an attempt is made to climb it, care must be taken, for boughs of considerable thickness are likely to snap under a comparatively light weight.