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Children's Nonfiction Environmental Science & Ecosystems

Who Needs a Reef?

A Coral Ecosystem

by (author) Karen Patkau

Publisher
Tundra
Initial publish date
Sep 2014
Category
Environmental Science & Ecosystems, Environmental Conservation & Protection, Zoology
Recommended Age
7 to 10
Recommended Grade
2 to 5
  • Hardback

    ISBN
    9781770493902
    Publish Date
    Sep 2014
    List Price
    $19.99

Classroom Resources

Download Teacher’s Guide

Where to buy it

Description

Karen Patkau takes readers on an amazing voyage of discovery to find out

   • How coral reefs form 
   • Why coral reefs bustle and teem with life 
   • Why there are more kinds of living things on coral reefs than anywhere else in the sea 
   • What the types of hard corals are 
   • Which plants and animals attach themselves to coral reefs 
   • How coral reefs protect shorelines 
   • How coral reefs help develop natural harbors and beaches 
   • Where the coral reef areas of the world are 
   • Why we need coral reefs

About the author

KAREN PATKAU has been writing and illustrating picture books, with a focus on nature and non-fiction, for more than thirty years. She won the Ezra Jack Keats Memorial Medal for her first book, Don’t Eat Spiders by Robert Heidbreder, and since then her titles have appeared on lists including Bank Street College of Education Best Children’s Books, Children’s Literature Roundtables of Canada Information Book Award finalists, Green Book Festival Award finalists, Ontario Library Association Best Bets and White Ravens selections. Karen has also illustrated Forest: A See to Learn Book. She lives in Toronto.

 

Karen Patkau's profile page

Editorial Reviews

PRAISE FOR Ecosystem Series:

"Patkau introduces readers to the North American Arctic ecosystem efficiently and methodically, discussing habitat, the food chain and seasonal changes, along with the ever-important formation of the iceberg.... Her digitally composed illustrations at times offer informative scenic views, and at times, present readers with more direct scientific information. This, as well as its companion volumes Who Needs a Swamp? and Who Needs a Jungle? offers a clear, readable introduction for budding naturalists and geographers." - The Toronto Star

"...Patkau offers a series of vibrant scenes ... striking illustrations. The text both interprets the visual content ... and offers paragraphs of diverse facts." - Booklist

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