coral reef roughly parallel to the shore and separated from it by a lagoon of considerable depth and width, or in some cases by several kilometres of open sea
a long, narrow coral reef, roughly parallel to the shore and separated from it by a lagoon of considerable depth and width It may lie a great distance from a continental coast It is often interrupted by passes or channels
A long, narrow ridge of coral or rock parallel to and relatively near a coastline, separated from the coastline by a lagoon too deep for coral growth. a line of coral (=pink stone-like substance) separated from the shore by water
One of three geomorophologically distinct types of A HREF="bas01r-6 html#coralreef">coral reefs, the other two being fringing reefs and atolls Barrier reefs are separated from land by a lagoon usually formed by coastal subsidence See Barnes and Hughes (1988)
The largest coral reef in the world, about 2,011 km (1,250 mi) long, off the northeast coast of Australia. Its vividly colored banks are known for their exotic fish and crustaceans. the largest coral reef in the world, off the northeast coast of Australia. It is around 2000 km (1250 miles) long. Long stretch of coral reef, shoals, and islets in the Pacific Ocean, off the northeastern coast of Queensland, Australia. The largest deposit of coral in the world, it extends for more than 1,250 mi (2,000 km) along the Australian coast and has an area of some 135,000 sq mi (350,000 sq km). The reef has been formed over millions of years from the skeletons of a mass of living marine organisms. In addition to at least 300 species of hard coral, marine life includes anemones, worms, gastropods, lobsters, crayfishes, prawns, crabs, and a variety of fishes. Encrusting red algae form the purplish red algal rim that is one of the reef's characteristic features