Where is the Great Barrier Reef?

The Great Barrier Reef is located off of the coast of Australia. It is also the largest coral reef in the world. It is over 1,257 miles long. Coral reefs are normally in shallow, warm water, usually near land, and mostly in the tropics. Coral prefer temperatures between 70 and 85 ° F. There are coral reefs off the eastern coast of Africa, off the southern coast of India, in the Red Sea, and off the coasts of northeast and northwest Australia and on to Polynesia. There are also coral reefs off the coast of Florida, USA, to the Caribbean, and down to Brazil. What can you see in the images of the great barrier reef? Why do you think they form in shallow water?