These walls are covered in a large variety of hard and soft corals.

It feeds primarily on the polyps of soft and hard corals.

They are often found where hard corals have largely died out as a result of one of the above processes.

The mean cover of hard corals was also higher in sanctuary zones.

It is found on hard or soft corals in shallow water reefs, at a depth of 10 - 50 m.

Sea life is abundant with a variety of hard and soft corals.

The starfish show preferences between the hard corals that they feed on.

Below me and to one side a magnificent bank of hard coral shelved down into the blackness.

The hard coral was vibrant and unbroken, a vista of healthy reef that made my heart sing.

In the Caribbean alone, at least 50 species of uniquely structured hard coral exist.