The aquatic biome is divided into two categories – marine and freshwater. The latter is water containing less than 500 parts per million of dissolved salts. This liquid occurs naturally in lakes, ponds, streams, and rivers.
Even though the total freshwater ecosystem is less than 0.01% of the planet’s surface water, it can still support over 125,000 species. This number includes both aquatic and semi-aquatic animals. Naturally, the most common freshwater animal is the fish.
But we shouldn’t drag this introduction! After all, we’re about to present more than 50 animals that live and prosper in the freshwater biome. As such, get your table-reading (or search) skills ready as you’re about to be blasted away with fresh(water) information!
50+ Animals That Call the Freshwater Biome Their Habitat
There’s so much more to the
freshwater biomethan just fish and aquatic animals.
©RLS Photo/Shutterstock.com
Before we begin, it’s essential to explain exactly what a biome is. Looking at freshwater, some might think that only animals living in this type of water can be mentioned in the table below.
However, per the definition, a biome is a large area characterized by vegetation, soil, climate, and wildlife. As such, while the heron doesn’t spend its whole life in freshwater bodies as it’s not a very good swimmer, this bird is tied to this particular biome – as its main food sources live in freshwater.
In short, if a species is tied to the freshwater biome one way or another, it will most likely end up being mentioned in a table like the one below. After all, there’s so much more to the freshwater biome than just fish and aquatic animals!
Before discussing more than 50 freshwater animals, it’s essential to mention that not all species in the genera mentioned below reside in freshwater habitats. At the same time, some can be found in both marine and freshwater environments.
| Animal | Scientific Name | Distribution | Type of Animal | Characteristic Features |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| American alligator | Alligator mississippiensis | United States, Mexico | Reptile | Largest alligator, bony nasal bridge, presents a fourth tooth |
| Axolotl | Ambystoma mexicanum | Valley of Mexico | Amphibian | External gills, caudal fin extending from behind the head, wide heads, lidless eyes |
| Buru babirusa | Babyrusa babyrussa | Buru island of Indonesia, Sula Islands of Mangole, Taliabu | Mammal | Long and thick brownish body hair |
| Eurasian beaver | Castor fiber | Asia, United Kingdom, Scandinavia, Continental Europe | Mammal | Largest living rodent species |
| European bitterling | Rhodeus amarus | Europe | Ray-finned fish | Up to 4 inches long |
| Caecilian | Gymnophiona (order) | South and Central America, Africa, southern Asia | Amphibian | Limbless, vermiform/serpentine amphibians |
| Carp | Cyprinidae (family) | Europe, Asia | Ray-finned fish; oily freshwater fish | Scales and teeth on the inferior pharyngeal bones |
| Eurasian coot | Fulica atra | Europe, Asia, New Zealand, North Africa, Australia | Bird | Slaty-black body, glossy back head, white bill |
| Crab | Brachyura (infraorder) | Worldwide in oceans, freshwater, on land | Crustacean | Thick exoskeleton, a pair of pincers |
| Crayfish | Astacoidea and Parastacoidea (superfamilies) | Mainly North America, Australia, and New Zealand | Crustacean | Feather-like gills; don’t survive in polluted water |
| Dipper | Cinclus (genus) | Americas, Asia, Europe, Africa (highlands) | Bird | Small, short-tailed, stout, chunky |
| Dragonfly | Anisoptera (infraorder) | Worldwide, except in Antarctica | Insect | Large compound eyes, transparent wings, elongated body |
| Electric eel | Electrophorus (genus) | Southern South America | Ray-finned fish | Elongated, cylindrical body, dark gray-brown on the back |
| Frog | Anura (order) | Worldwide, except in Antarctica | Amphibian | Extremely varied characteristics, according to species. |
| Gull | Laridae (family) | Worldwide (including Antarctica and the high Arctic) | Bird | Rounded tail, long legs, webbed feet, slightly hooked bill |
| Heron | Ardeidae (family) | Worldwide, except in Antarctica | Bird | Long necks, strong and long legs, harpoon-like bill |
| Newt | Pleurodelinae (subfamily) | North America, North Africa, Asia, Europe | Amphibian; salamander | Varied, depending on the species |
| Piranha | Serrasalmidae (family) | In the Amazon basin, in the rivers of the Guianas, and in the Sao Francisco River. | Ray-finned fish | Single row of sharp teeth, small size, strong jaws |
| Great white pelican | Pelecanus onocrotalus | Africa, Asia, Europe | Bird | Huge bird, dull pale-yellow gular pouch, pink/yellow bill |
| Shrimp | Caridea and Dendrobranchiata (suborders) | Worldwide | Crustacean | Elongated body, eight pairs of appendages, muscular abdomen, eyes on stalks |
| Shelduck | Tadorna (genus) | Europe, Asia, North Africa, Namibia, Botswana, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Eastern Russia, East Asia | Bird | Mid-sized, 19.6 – 23.6 inches, green, black, and white colorations, feeds on small shore animals. |
| Turtle | Testudines (order) | Worldwide on continents, islands, and in oceans | Reptile | Shell developed from the ribs and made mostly of bone, solid and rigid skull. |
| Warbler | Passeriformes (order) | Depends on the species | Perching bird | Small, colorful, vocal, feeds on insects |
| Wigeon | Mareca (genus) | The Palearctic, North America, and South America | Birds; dabbling ducks | Steep forehead, distinctive breeding plumage in males, feeds on grass leaves. |
| X-ray tetra | Pristella maxillaris | In the Amazon and Orinoco basins, in the rivers of the Guianas | Ray-finned fish; characin | Translucent body, small, measuring around 2 inches long |
| Fishing cat | Prionailurus viverrinus | South and Southeast Asia | Mammal; wild cat | Yellowish-gray fur, two black stripes on the cheeks and two above the eyes, two rows of spots around the throat |
| Raccoon | Procyon lotor | North America | Mammal | Measures 16 – 28 inches long, grayish coat with dense underfur, known for its facial mask |
| Arowana | Osteoglossinae (subfamily) | South America, Asia, and Australia | Ray-finned fish; bony fish | Bony head, elongated body covered with large scales |
| Capybara | Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris | South America | Mammal; rodent | Barrel-shaped body, short head, reddish-brown fur that’s yellowish-brown underneath |
| Archerfish | Toxotes (genus) | India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Southeast Asia, Northern Australia, and Melanesia | Ray-finned fish | Deep, laterally compressed body, measures around 5 – 7 inches |
| Jacana | Jacana (genus) | In the American tropics and subtropics, western Panama | Bird | Long neck, long yellow bill, black-brown coloration, pale yellow-green feathers |
| Yangtze finless porpoise | Neophocaena asiaeorientalis | The Yangtze River in China | Mammal; toothed whale | Grows up to around 7 feet long, curved flippers with pointed ends, slender body |
| White sturgeon | Acipenser transmontanus | In the Eastern Pacific | Ray-finned fish | Gray to brownish dorsal side, pale ventral side, gray fins, around 5.2 feet long |
| Palmate newt | Lissotriton helveticus | Western Europe | Amphibian | 2 – 3.7 inches long, brown or olive with dark spots |
| Medicinal leech | Hirudo medicinalis | Europe and Asia | Annelid worm | Green, brown, or brown-green, has a thin red stripe on the dorsal side, and three jaws with 100 sharp edges. |
| Grebe | Podicipedidae (family) | Worldwide, except in Antarctica | Bird | Small to medium-large, excellent swimmer, dense, waterproof plumage |
| Glyphis | Glyphis (genus) | Southeast Asia and Australia | Cartilaginous fish; river shark | Stocky body with a high back, wide and flattened head, rounded snout |
| Crane fly | Tipulidae (family) | Depends on the species | Insect | Slender body, stilt-like legs, long rostrum |
| Garter snake | Thamnophis (genus) | North and Central America | Reptile; snake | Large, round eyes, slender bodies, longitudinal stripes |
| Cottonmouth | Agkistrodon piscivorus | Southeastern United States | Reptile; pit viper | Broad head, blunt snout, black, brown, gray, and olive color patterns |
| Hippopotamus | Hippopotamus amphibius | sub-Saharan Africa | Mammal | Wide-opening mouth, canine tusks, almost hairless body, pillar-like legs |
| Snail | Gastropoda (class) | Worldwide | Gastropod | Highly depends on the snail type |
| Water voles | Arvicola (genus) | Europe, Asia, Western North America | Mammal | Thick fur, hairy fringes on feet, reach 4.7 – 8.6 inches long without tail |
| Xenopoecilus | Xenopoecilus (genus) | Sulawesi, Indonesia | Ray-finned fish | Depends on the species |
| Irrawaddy dolphins | Orcaella brevirostris | Bay of Bengal, Southeast Asia | Mammal | Gray to dark blue, pale underneath, small, triangular dorsal fin, high, rounded forehead |
| Flamingo | Phoenicopteridae (family) | The Americas, Afro-Eurasia | Wading bird | Pinkish or bright red plumage, long neck, two long legs |
| Otter | Lutrinae (subfamily) | Depends on the species | Mammal | Long, slim body, short limbs, sharp claws, long tails |
| Hellbender | Cryptobranchus alleganiensis | Eastern and central United States | Amphibian; giant salamander | Flat head and body, short legs, four toes on front legs and five on back limbs, rudder-shaped tail |
| Diving beetle | Dytiscidae (family) | Depends on the species | Insect; water beetle | Blackish, dark brown, or dark olive |
| Caiman | Caimaninae (subfamily) | Mexico, Central, and South America | Reptile; alligatorid | Small-sized, lacks a bony septum, longer and sharper teeth |
| Water strider | Gerridae (family) | Europe, North America, South America, Asia, South Africa, Australia | Insect | Elongated body and legs, two antennae, long and narrow thorax |
Up Next:
- The 12 Largest Freshwater Lakes in the World
- Discover 6 Freshwater Shark Species!
- Discover World’s Largest Freshwater Fish Captured
The photo featured at the top of this post is © iStock.com/mesut zengin
Sources
- Active Wild, Available here: https://www.activewild.com/freshwater-animals/
- Animals' Space, Available here: https://aquaticanimalsinfo.com/freshwater-animals/
- Vedantu, Available here: https://www.vedantu.com/english/freshwater-animal-names
- ResearchGate, Available here: https://www.researchgate.net/figure/The-geographic-distribution-of-arowana-showing-species-color-coded-by-potential_fig1_335578261
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