There are 2 types of coral reef:

• oceanic - found far away from land, where the ocean floor rises in underwater mountain ranges. Some of these mountain ranges break the ocean surface to form islands and many reef thrives in these shallow waters.


• continental - form close to non-reef landmasses.There are 3 types of continental reef.


• Shelf Reef - form close to continents, on the sloping continental shelves.


• Fringing Reef - shelf reefs that develop close to land in shallow waters.


• Barrier Reef - walls of coral that line the edge of a continental shelf.