Name________________________________________________ Date________________
Pond Vocabulary Words and Meanings
Adapt: to adjust to a use or situation
Aquatic: from or in the water
Bacteria: tiny organisms, too small to be seen with the naked eye
Carnivore: an animal that eats other animals
Conserve: to protect habitats and wildlife; plants and animals
Gill: an opening on the site of a fish s head through which it breathes
Habitat: the place where an animal or plant lives; their environment
Herbivore: an animal that eats only plants
Larva: a young insect that has hatched from an egg, which then grows and
turns into an adult
Life cycle: the changes an animal or plant goes through from birth to death
Mammal: an animal with hair that feeds it young with milk from the mother
Marsh: wet ground near a lake or river; swamp
Microscopic: too small to see with the naked eye, but visible with a
microscope
Pond: a small pool of water, often with many different types of animals and
plants
Predator: any animal that lives by hunting and catching other animals for food
Prey: animals that are killed by other animals for food
1 ©abcteach.com 2002
Name________________________________________________ Date________________
Pond Information
A pond can be divided into 3 areas.
1. Open Water (the surface center of the pond)
2. Muddy Bottom (in the pond, under the water)
3. Shallows (at the edge of the pond)
The surface of the pond is covered by:
1. floating plants
2. large water lily leaves
3. insects
4. small birds that run across the leaves
5. microscopic plants
6. small organisms called plankton
7. algae
8. small animals, hydra, and insect larva
The bottom of the pond is covered with mud.
1. Some animals live on top of the mud
2. Some animals live in the mud and search for food.
The shallow part of the pond is along the edge. You will find:
1. plant roots
2. frogs, toads, and other small animals looking for food
3. small animals that use the plants along the edge of the pond for
shelter.
Some Pond Animals and Plants
Water Lily Dragonfly Vole Pond Snail
Iris Kingfisher Rushes and Frogs and
Reeds Toads
Water Beetle Insect Larva Perch Tadpoles
Newt Stickleback Water Spider Water Striders
Turtles Cattails Pike Swans
Ducks Heron Butterflies Geese
2 ©abcteach.com 2002
Name________________________________________________ Date________________
Pond Life: The Surface
The life on the surface of the pond gets a lot of sun. Plants
need plenty of sun to grow. The water lily has broad leaves that are
on the surface of the pond. It gathers energy from the sun. The roots
of the water lily hang down into the deeper water of the pond.
Many animals live on the surface of the pond. Water striders,
water spiders, and beetles move easily across the top of the water
because they are so light. Many insects are on the surface of the
water, too. Some live in the water and come to the surface to get air.
Plankton grows in the water and is used as food by many animals.
1. The surface of the pond
a. has many earthworms.
b. has water spiders moving along the surface.
c. has water lily pads.
d. both b and c.
2. Microscopic means
a. large and easy to see.
b. muddy.
c. small, not visible to the naked eye.
d. aquatic animals.
3. Many animals get their food from
a. the sun.
b. plankton.
c. air.
d. none of the above.
4. The sun
a. helps plants grow.
b. lights the earth.
c. warms the pond.
d. all of the above.
3 ©abcteach.com 2002
Name________________________________________________ Date________________
Pond life: The Muddy Bottom
The bottom of the pond is muddy. Decaying dead leaves and
animals sink to the bottom and form part of the mud. The mud is also
full of fungi and bacteria. They help break down the dead animals
and plants. This process helps provide nutrients for the plants to
grow. The mud can be very deep in places. It is often very bad-
smelling, too. The larvae of many insects crawl on the top of the
mud. They often stay there all day because it protects them from
other animals. Some animals, like ducks and turtles, hunt for food in
the muddy areas. Turtles spend the winter asleep in the mud. The
muddy bottom is an important part of the pond habitat.
1. What helps form the muddy bottom of the pond?
a. deer
b. birds
c. decaying leaves and animals
d. none of the above
2. Fungi and bacteria help
a. turtles sleep through the winter.
b. protect other animals.
c. provide nutrients for plants by breaking down plants.
d. none of the above
.
3. Larvae
a. live on the surface of the mud.
b. stay in the mud to hide from predators.
c. can be food for other animals.
d. all of the above
4. Turtles
a. stay on the surface of the pond in the winter.
b. sleep in the mud during the winter.
c. don t do well in ponds.
d. none of the above
4 ©abcteach.com 2002
Name________________________________________________ Date________________
Pond Plants
There are many types of plants that live in the pond habitat. Aquatic
plants contain air. These plants are buoyant. That means they are able to
float on the top of the water. The plants that float on the top of the water get a
lot of light from the sun. The plants get energy and make food from the sun.
This is called photosynthesis. Plants help the pond habitat. They produce an
element called oxygen. Animals need oxygen to live.
There are tiny plants called algae that live in the pond. Sometimes the
whole surface of the pond is covered with a green blanket of algae. Algae float
on the surface.
Some plants, like the cattail, live at the edge of the pond. The cattail has
a big slender head filled with seeds at the top of its long stem. When the outer
cover breaks open, the seeds fly away and plant more cattails along the pond s
edge.
Plants are an important part of the pond habitat.
1. The process of changing the sun s energy into food is called
a. algae.
b. habitat.
c. photosynthesis.
d. aquatic.
2. Aquatic means
a. lives in or on water.
b. To change sunlight to food.
c. To float.
d. buoyant.
3. In this article,  green blanket refers to
a. algae.
b. cattails.
c. muddy bottom.
d. the pond.
4. Habitat means
a. the sun.
b. plants.
c. the place plants and animals live.
d. none of the above
5 ©abcteach.com 2002
Name________________________________________________ Date________________
Animals in the Pond
The largest animals in the pond are fish. They come in various sizes.
The stickleback is very small. Some fish, such as the pike, are very large.
Fish swim in the pond water to get from place to place looking for food. They
have gills to breathe. A gill is an opening on the site of a fish s head, through
which it breathes. The gill helps filter out some of the pond material, like
plankton. The fish feed on the small animals and plants. A large carp will even
hunt larger animals, like the cygnets (baby swans) or ducklings.
The stickleback is an interesting fish. It lays its eggs in a nest. The male
makes a nest at the bottom of the pond in the mud. If the female stickleback
likes the nest, she will use it to lay her eggs.
There are many animals outside the pond, too. Birds, including herons,
swans, and ducks, live on the shores of the pond and use the pond to find food.
Butterflies, deer, and many other animals find the pond habitat inviting, and can
be seen along the shores. The quiet pond is busy with life.
1. Gills
a. help fish breathe.
b. are a type of fish.
c. help fish bite their prey.
d. all of the above
2. The stickleback is a
a. bird.
b. fish.
c. turtle.
d. mammal.
3. A cygnet is a
a. baby duck.
b. baby turtle.
c. baby swan.
d. baby heron.
6 ©abcteach.com 2002
Name________________________________________________ Date________________
Answer Sheet
Page 3
1. d
2. c
3. b
4. d
Page 4
1. c
2. c
3. d
4. b
Page 5
1. c
2. a
3. a
4. c
Page 6
1. a
2. b
3. c
7 ©abcteach.com 2002