Fresh and Saltwater Animal Poster
Choose one animal that is dependent on freshwater for survival and one that is dependent on saltwater
for survival. Create a poster that contains:
1. A printed picture or drawing of both animals
2. The scientific (Latin) name of both animals
3. What is the water temperature (Fahrenheit) and salinity (fresh, brackish or salt) of the animal’s
preferred habitat?
4. What bodies of water does the animal live in? BE SPECIFIC
5. How are they dependent on fresh or salt water? BE SPECIFIC.
6. What three adaptations do they have that enable them to live in fresh or salt water? BE
SPECIFIC.
7. What are two man-made threats to this animal? BE SPECIFIC.
Example
2. The West Indian Manatee
Trichechus manatus
3. The manatee prefers brackish water estuaries and freshwater streams with a temperature
of 68-72 F.
4. Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Ocean. They also migrate into warm Florida rivers, like the
Homosassa River.
5. The manatee is dependent of fresh, salt and brackish water for its diet of over sixty
different species of aquatic plants.
6. Manatees are mammals and have lungs to breathe air. They can hold their breath for up to
20 minutes. They also have a paddle-shaped tail enabling them to swim, and a specialized
digestive system enabling them to digest tough plant matter.
7. Manatees threatened because boat propellers frequently hit them, causing fatal injuries.
Also, pollution in the form of nutrients causes proliferation of algae, or eutrophication. The
algae release toxins that can kill manatees.