Freshwater Animal & Plant Adaptations

Animal Adaptations
Many plants and animals have adapted to the freshwater biome and could not survive in water
having a higher salt concentration. As this ecosystem covers a vast portion of the world, the
animal life found can vary considerably.
Fish are able to obtain oxygen through their gills. Fish such as trout have adapted to living in
rivers and streams where the water is cooler, clearer and has a higher oxygen level. At the mouth
of these water sources, the sediments create a more murky environment with lower oxygen levels
and fish such as catfish and carp have adapted to exist in these areas.
There are three zones in lakes and ponds:
The littoral zone (the topmost and warmest is home to snails, clams, insects, crustaceans, fishes
and amphibians and the eggs and larvae of dragonflies and midges). These resources provide
food for turtles, snakes and ducks.
The limnetic zone is close to the surface and consequently receives a good deal of light. This
zone contains a variety of freshwater fish.
The profundal zone is very dense and cold, with little light penetrating this region. Only
heterotrophs (animals that eat dead organisms) are found in this region
Mammals (badgers, otters, mink) live near water and are capable of swimming to catch their
main food source, fish.
Amphibians and reptiles (toads, frogs, alligators, crocodiles, salamanders and newts start life
underwater as eggs and tadpoles, and then move to ground as adults.
Insects such as skaters, water beetles, mosquitoes and dragonflies can skim over the surface of
ponds, playing a critical role in the food supply for other animals. Some spiders can actually take
a bubble of air with them underwater.
Many species of ducks, geese and swans also call the freshwater biome their home, feeding on
a number of different items including fish, while wading birds such as herons and egrets wander
through the mud shallows searching for insects.
Manatees have adapted to survive in warm water and migrate south. Some have found the warm
water near power plants, and consequently do not have to migrate.
Beavers shape their environment more than most other animal species on Earth, utilizing their
ever-growing teeth to cut down trees and plants to create dams to create their dens. Their actions

are not always appreciated by nearby humans, but they are vital to the ecology, causing a buildup of water which in turn creates a new wetland. Beavers also help to purify water because the
sediments and any toxins are trapped behind the dam.

Plant Adaptations
Various species of aquatic plants and algae have also adapted to exist in the wider parts of rivers
and streams where the water is clear enough to allow sunlight to penetrate.
Zooplankton are microscopic organisms that live suspended in the water environment, moving
via convection or wind-induced currents. Plankton live for only a short period of time; when they
die they fall into the deep-water and provide food for larger animals.
Wetlands contain standing water and plant species that have adapted to this very moist and
humid environment include pond lilies, cattails, sedges, tamarack and black spruce, cypress and
gum.

Saltwater Animal & Plant Adaptations

Animal Adaptations
There are 120 species of mammals including whales, dolphins, porpoises, seals and sea lions
which have evolved to adapt to their aquatic environment by developing small appendages (ears
and flippers), a generally large size, hydrodynamic (mechanical properties of liquid) body shapes
and different methods to cope with extreme changes in temperature.
The ocean provides habitat for a wide variety of animals, some of which are flying-fish, sharks,
narwhals, sting-rays, whales, tarpon, tuna, sardines and jellyfish. One tiny shrimp-like animal
known as the phaeton is a key species floating freely in the ocean. Many fish and marine
mammals feed on it, and in turn carnivorous predators such as sharks, orcas and electric eels tear
apart their prey, allowing pieces to fall to the sea floor and decompose, providing a rich fertilizer.
Fish are able to obtain oxygen through their gills, a specialized structure in which blood comes
into contact with the water over a very large surface.
Animals such as flatworms, sea stars, giant isopod (wood louse) sole and flounder have adapted
to living in the deepest ocean trenches where the pressure can be over one thousand atmospheres.
Mammals such as whales, dolphins, porpoises, manatees, dugong, seals, walrus, otters and
even polar bears swim effortlessly through their watery environment, diving and swimming with
ease. For example, the sperm whale cleans out its lungs to get rid of old carbon dioxide and load
up with fresh oxygen in its swimming muscles before diving as low as 8,200 feet as it hunts for
food. At this depth, the pressure is tremendous and a human would suffer from the bends if not
properly pressurized. Sperm whales routinely hold their breath for as long as one hour before
returning to the surface to repeat the process.
The watery environment is not conducive to strong vision because of light absorption, and as a
result some marine mammals have evolved to rely upon echolocation.
Toothed whales (dolphins, porpoises, river dolphins, orcas and sperm whales) send out a series
of high-frequency clicks in the direction their head is pointing and listen to the echoes of those
calls as they return from various objects in their environment. The different rates of click
production are heard as barks, squeals and growls in the bottlenose dolphin. Some of the smaller
toothed whales have a tooth arrangement that aids in echolocation.

Plankton converts inorganic carbon into sugars that are stored in its cells. They are in turn eaten
by zooplankton, filter feeders and baleen whales. Zooplankton are eaten by small fish which in
turn are eaten by salmon, tuna, seabirds, marine mammals, and so on.
Bird Adaptations
There are thousands of seabirds that depend heavily on the ocean in order to survive. Birds in
general have evolved to have hollow bones for flying, lightweight toothless bills for eating and
strong waterproof feathers. Many seabirds (frigate birds, albatross, gulls) have developed large
wingspans so they can travel long distances and take advantage of food sources different from
terrestrial birds (cormorants are divers; penguins live in Antarctica where other birds dont and
cannot fly but are excellent swimmers; gulls are coastal scavengers).
Ducks have developed webbed feet for swimming. Many birds have light-coloured plumage to
protect them from being seen by predators, whereas divers have light colour on their fronts and
dark colour on their backs to make them less visible.
Birds bills have evolved to suit their specific food preference. For instance, pelicans have a huge
pouch to scoop up fish; albatrosses have very large nostrils allowing them to smell food from a
great distance; ducks have long, flat bills to strain small plants and animals from the water,
whereas herons and kingfishers have spear-like bills adapted for fishing.
Seabirds must return to land to nest and generally choose remote cliffs to protect them from
terrestrial predators. Many eggs are cone-shaped so that they dont roll off the cliffs.
Plant Adaptations
Plankton is a term used to describe organisms that float in the oceans, but which rely upon
currents to move, and can be either plant or animal. Most are found in the pelagic zone and very
important to life on Earth. They support many of the animals higher up in the food chain, all the
way up to humans. Plankton also greatly assist in photosynthesis (process by which organisms
turn carbon dioxide and water into carbohydrates and oxygen), and thus are vital to maintaining
our atmosphere. Plankton require a balanced environment and nutrients in order to survive.
Plant life includes seaweed, algae, dark star, sea-cactus, fungi, ocean lilly, Cimarron, yorma bulb,
red tide.