Welcome to the Animal Life in The Ocean

Layers of the Ocean Back Next Sunlit Zone 0-600 feet * In the sunlit zone the water is very warm because that is where the sun hits. Most of the plants and animals live in the sunlit zone. This is were you will find most sharks although there is some sharks that Twilight Zone 600-3,300 feet * The twilight zone temperature can be as low as 41 degrees F. Because there is less light there than in the sunlit zone. Dark Zone 3,300-13,200 feet * In the dark zone the temperature is about 35 degrees F. There is not so much food in this zone. Abyss 13,200-19,800 feet * In this layer the mud is made from the skeletons of other small sea animals. The mud can be more than a mile thick Trenches over 19,800 feet * Only animals that are adapted to the freezing water can survive in this layer Back Next

Sunlit Zone This is a sea horse and they are found in the sunlit zone. Did you know that the sea horses head is like a horses head and the sea horses tail looks like a monkeys tail. Also, baby sea horses are born in an unusual way. The mother sea horse lays the eggs in the fathers pouch on the fathers belly. The father carries the eggs until they hatch. Sea horses swim with heads up and their tails down. They bob up and down in the water. When they move up and down they look like horses on a merry-go-round. Next Back

Twilight Zone Next Back Animals that live in the twilight zone must be able to survive cold temperatures, an increase in water pressure and dark waters. There are no plants in this zone, because there is not enough light for photosynthesis. Many animals in this zone have thin bodies that help them hide from predators. Other organisms in this zone are red or black in color to better blend in with the dark water. When a predator is looking up at them, they are so thin that they are hard to see!  Some fish, like viper fish and the hatchet fish,  have sharp fangs and large mouths that help them catch food Next Back

Dark Zone In the bathypelagic zone there is a total absence of sunlight. Bioluminescence (light produced by living creatures) is the only source of light. Food is even scarcer than in the mesopelagic zone above. With less energy available, most of the fish are ‘sit and wait’ predators, or actively attract prey with bioluminescent lures. Bathypelagic organisms are mostly black, red or transparent, rendering them essentially invisible in the weak biological light. Bristlemouths and deep-sea angler fish are the commonest fish, typically less than 10 centimetres long. Next Back

Abyssal Zone Abyssal plains are flat or very gently sloping areas of the deep ocean basin floor. They are among the Earth's flattest and smoothest regions and the least explored. Abyssal plains cover approximately 40% of the ocean floor and reach depths between 2,200 and 5,500 m (7,200 and 18,000 ft). They generally lie between the foot of a continental rise and a mid-oceanic ridge.

How Do Fish Mate? Fish mate by external fertilisation, meaning that the sperms enter the eggs somewhere outside the body. Usually the female lays eggs on a surface while the male releases sperms into the water to fertilise the eggs. It is important to bear in mind, however, that this is a sexual reproduction as the fusion of gametes (sex cells) is involved in the process.