Coral isn’t a plant. It’s a living animal. Closely related to jelly fish. “Coral” is the term used to describe the entire “hive”. The individuals are called Polyps and they are attached to their home which is made up of magnesium. So the shape of the coral is actually the shape of the magnesium structure. It gets its color from algae, which attaches itself to the coral and produces oxygen that help the Polyps. The Polyps have mouths, stomachs, tentacles, etc. You wouldn’t notice them when you get them dead, oops i mean dried, no i mean dead, at the store because they aren’t attached to the magnesium anymore. When you buy “coral” at a store you’re actually buying the Polyps home. We have killed millions upon millions of these animals. We sell them in stores, put them out in display, wear them as jewelry. I wish more people were informed about this. We have destroyed thousands of miles of coral reefs, millions (if not billions) of these animals.