Terry Lilley, Critter of the Week
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When we are out snorkeling here in Hawai‘i, we all see hard stony coral that has different colors. Coral is made up of a hard calcium carbonate structure that is similar to the concrete we build condominiums out of on land. The hard calcium structure protects the soft clear coral polyps from being washed away in the surf, much like a house on land protects soft bodied humans from washing away in a storm.

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