How do fish breathe underwater?
Ooh, fish need air too, buddy, but they get it from the water!
Pip’s answer
- Ooh, fish need air too, buddy, but they get it from the water!
- Water has tiny bits of oxygen mixed into it, too tiny to see!
- Fish gulp the water, gulp gulp, and their gills catch the oxygen!
Try it together
Can you make a fishy face and gulp like a fish?
For grown-ups
Water contains dissolved oxygen. Fish take water in through the mouth and push it over their gills, which have thin feathery filaments full of blood vessels. Oxygen passes from the water into the blood, and the water flows out through the gill slits.
Ask your child: Can you see a fish's gills move at an aquarium?
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- 🐚Why do seashells sound like the ocean?
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