PLANKTON

Plankton is the mass of tiny organisms that drifts at or near the surface of oceans, lakes, and other bodies of water. The word plankton comes from a Greek word that means wandering. Some planktonic organisms can swim, but they cannot swim strongly enough to avoid being carried about by ocean currents. Plankton are microscopic plants. They use the sun's energy to grow like plants on land. Some of the plankton are the young of much larger creatures. Because they drift with the ocean currents, these can travel much further than they can as adults, allowing them to reach new homes. They can't be seen by eyes, to see planktons you have to use microscope, because they too small to be seen with the human eyesight. They have lived for millions of years. Plankton are the main source of food for most of the world's whales and some fish eat plankton. They normally live under the sea or on the surface. These types are phytoplankton and zooplankton. Phytoplankton consists chiefly of simple, one-celled algae. Zooplankton includes microscopic protozoans and such sea animals as copepods, water fleas, and jellyfish.