Although life in the ocean comes in many shapes and sizes, most living things seem to be concentrated in three ocean areas. Thousands of tiny plants and animals float on the surface of the ocean. They are called plankton, and are so tiny they cannot be seen with the naked eye. They live on the ocean surface, where there is sunlight, rather than on the ocean bottom. Tiny shrimp-like animals called copepods eat plankton.
Copepods are as small as the head of a pin.
On the ocean bottom near the shore, there are many plants and animals. Here sunlight reaches the bottom and many plants are able to grow. A great variety of animals live in the water near the shore. Crabs, lobster and shrimp move along the ocean bottom looking for food. Fish also swim along the bottom.