[GoFish]

Blue Ridge Coral is the only reef building Soft Coral which has a hard skeleton. The body of Heliopora coerulea is composed of Calcium Carbonate and Iron salts. The structure of the Blue Ridge Coral is columnar, encrusting, branched and plate-like. When alive, Heliopora coerulea is brown in color. Blue Ridge Coral has a hard skeleton composed of aragonite deposits. The skeleton of Blue Ridge Coral is sky blue in color owing to its absorption of iron from the marine water around it. Blue Ridge Coral then oxidizes the absorbed iron into blue salt which is subsequently deposited into Heliopora coerulea’s skeleton imparting it blue color. The outer surface of Blue Ridge Coral is covered with long and thin olive colored polyps. Each polyp of Heliopora coerulea has eight tentacles.

Where's the poll lol