Childrens Illustrated Encyclopedia

Fish

207

Sea horSe

Sea horse eggs are

deposited by the

female into the

male’s front pouch,

where they develop

for about four weeks.

When the eggs hatch, the

young sea horses emerge

from the pouch.

MouthbreederS

Some cichlid fish, found in african

lakes, keep their eggs safe inside

their mouths. When the young hatch

they swim out, and then return to

the parent’s mouth for safety.

Sea horses

School of fiSh

Small fish often live in large

groups called schools, twisting

and turning together as they

search for food. a predator is

sometimes so confused by their

numbers and quick, darting

movements that it cannot

single out a fish to attack.

Flying fish

Royal

gramma

fish

Cichlid fish

and young

breeding

Most fish reproduce by

depositing their eggs and

sperm in the water, and then

leaving the fertilized eggs

to develop into fish. Some

fish, such as sticklebacks

and bowfins, look after the

eggs and the young (called

fry) once they have hatched.

other fish, such as some

types of sharks, give birth to

fully formed young fish after

the eggs have developed in

the mother’s body.

Sea horses use their

tails to cling to seaweed.

feeding

fast predatory fish, such as barracudas,

have long, slim, streamlined bodies and

sharp teeth. Slower swimmers

usually have more

rounded bodies.

despite its

shape, the

parrotfish is

an agile

swimmer.

it slips

through

cracks in

the rock

in search

of food.

Parrotfish

eating algae

on a coral reef

tropical

ocean fiSh

fish, especially those

from tropical waters, are among

the brightest of all animals.

their dazzling colors and lively

patterns have many different

purposes. they help fish hide from

predators among the coral, warn

neighboring fish to keep out of

their territory, show other creatures

that they are poisonous, or

advertise for a mate.

School of sea goldfish

on a Red Sea coral reef

Strangely Shaped fiSh

each kind of fish is suited to its own way of life. the long nose of the

butterfly fish has a mouth at the tip to pick food from crevices in rocks.

flying fish use their enlarged fins as “wings” for gliding as they leap out

of the water. the bright colors on a lionfish

warn other creatures of the deadly poison in

its fin spines.

Long-nosed

butterfly fish

animals

deep-sea wildlife

Migration

ocean wildlife

Seashore wildlife

Find out more

Eggs develop

into larvae.

Young elvers

travel inland along rivers,

where they change into

yellow eels.

Lionfish

Larvae

swim

north and

change into

elvers.

EuropEan EEls

adult eels lay eggs in the Sargasso Sea. the eggs hatch

into larvae, which swim north for the next three years.

upon reaching europe they change into

elvers and swim up river.

there, they

grow into yellow

eels, and

then adults.

Yellow eels

change into

adult eels, then

return to the

Sargasso Sea

to breed.

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