Awesome Aquatic BiologyBy Megan Dunn

Let’s Get Started!

Think to yourself or talk to your partner about all the times you’ve been to the

beach, ocean or aquarium! Did you ever think about what may be

living in the water?

Orientation

Nemo loves going to school and learning all new things and making new friends every

day!See Nemo and his friends at school!

Motivation

Salt Water

Let’s swim in the saltwater!

Swimming with the saltwater creatures!

Salt Water Creatures

Salt Water!

What are they?

An arthropod is an animal with a segmented body and six or more jointed

legs

Arthropods

A sea crab is an example of an arthropod.

Examine what makes it an arthropod: Its jointed legs!

Arthropods

Shrimp are arthropods too!

Look very closely and you see that its body is segmented

Arthropods

Now that you have swam with the arthropods, now it is time to swim with the

sea mammals:

Sea Mammals

You’ve finished!

What are they?

A sea mammal is a mammal that lives in salty waters.

Sea Mammals

The Orca Whale Orca whales are also known as “Killer

Whales”. They live in cold water.

Sea Mammals

There are two types of common dolphins. First, click on the Long Beak Dolphin.Long Beak Dolphin Short Beak

Dolphin

Common Dolphin

Long beaked dolphins have a longer face than short beaked dolphins

Watch them swim!

Long Beak Dolphin

The short beaked common dolphin has more of a rounded melon that meets at the

beak at a sharp angle.

Short Beaked Dolphin

What is a melon?

A melon on a dolphin is its forehead. It contains oils.

Scientists think that the melon can make sounds that help the dolphins communicate.

Echolocation is how dolphins talk to each other.

Vocabulary

Humpback whales have a hard time keeping quiet!

They make many moans, howls, and cries.

Listen to what they have to say!

Humpback Whale

Seals can be fierce predators in the water!

They live in the very cold waters in Antarctica, where they eat squid.

Seal

What is a predator?

A predator is an organism who eats another organism.

In our example, a seal is the predator and the squid is the prey.

A prey is an organism that is eaten by another organism.

Vocabulary

You’ve completed the sea mammal section! You have had so much fun swimming with

the arthropods and the sea mammals, but now it is time to swim with the crustaceans:

You’ve Finished!

Crustaceans

What are they?

They are a class of arthropods.

The difference is all crustaceans have a hard shell with branching limbs.

Crustaceans

Horseshoe crabs are related to spiders and scorpions, not sea crabs!

Horseshoe crabs are found in Maine and Florida.

Horseshoe Crab

Lobsters live in saltwater and breathe through gills.

On the front of their head they have antennae and two eyes on the end of stalks.

Their tail looks like a fan!

Lobster

You have done such a great job swimming with the salt water creatures. Now it is time to explore the freshwater animals!

Freshwater Animals

You’ve finished!

There are many animals that live in our oceans, but there are also many who live in

freshwater such as a lake, river, or pond!

Freshwater Creatures

Crayfish live in freshwater. They closely resemble a lobster, but they are not related!

Remember, lobsters live in salt water!

Crayfish

Alligators are commonly found in freshwater, while crocodiles are more commonly found in salt water areas!

Alligators have very muscular and powerful jaws.

Check out those chompers!

Alligators

Frogs are not always green! They are usually the color of their

environment around them so they can blend in and hide!

Frogs

Hippopotamuses spend up to 16 hours of their day in the water!

Their eyes and nostrils are high in their head so they can see and breathe while in

the water.

Hippopotamus

You are becoming an expert! You are a great swimmer with the fresh and

salt water creatures. Now it is time to explore the aquatic plants!

You’ve finished!

Aquatic Plants

Not that kind of plant!

•All plants need water to survive, but some plants live on land and others live in water!

Let’s check out the plants that live in the water!

CoralCoral are soft plants that are related to jelly

fish. They live on rocks that they attach

themselves to.

Salt Water Plants

Pronounced: A-nem-oh- ne-sAnemones have tentacles and they respond to

even a light touch.

Find out who lives in an anemone!

Anemones

Lilies ( Lily pads) Many frogs like to catch some sun on lily

pads! They are like little islands to the frogs!

Freshwater Plants

Seaweed Seaweed can survive in freshwater and salt

water. They live on the seashore and shallow

waters throughout the world!

Both Freshwater & Saltwater

Here is a review to get you ready for the quiz.

Click on the picture you feel is the most appropriate answer.

It’s Review Time!

Which of the following creatures is a horseshoe crab?

Review

You really know your aquatic biology! Move on to the next question!

Correct!

Go back and carefully look at the pictures. Remember what makes a sea crab different

from a horseshoe crab.

Whoops!

Click on the best choice.

Which of the following is a fresh water creature?

Think about where the Orca whale lives. Would you find him in a pond or in the ocean?

Try the question again!

Whoops!

The Hippopotamus lives in fresh water and the Orca Whale lives in the ocean, which is

salt water. You are ready for your quiz!

Correct!

Now it’s time to put your aquatic biology skills to the test!

Read each question carefully and click on the best response!

Good luck!

Quiz

1. Echolocation is a way for dolphins to communicate.

True False

True or False

Whoops!

Try Again!

Back to Question 1

Great job! Let’s move on to question 2!

Continue to the next question

Correct!

2. Horseshoe crabs and common crabs are identical.

True False

True or False

Whoops!Try Again!

Back to Question 2

Great job! Let’s move on to question 3!

Continue to the next question

Correct!

3. Orca whales and dolphins are not sea mammals. They are freshwater creatures.

True False

True or False

Whoops!

Try Again!

Go back to Question 3

Great job! You’ve completed the quiz!

Correct!

You have completed the lesson! You are now an expert on aquatic biology!

Congratulations!