浮游动物是一类经常在水中浮游，本身不能制造有机物的异养型无脊椎动物和脊索动物幼体的总称，在水中营浮游性生活的动物类群。它们或者完全没有游泳能力，或者游泳能力微弱，不能作远距离的移动，也不足以抵拒水的流动力。
但是海洋中浮游动物每天的垂直运动——夜里上浮以寻找食物，白天下潜以躲避捕食者——也可以被视作迁徒。
But daily vertical movements by zooplankton in the ocean—upward by night to seek food, downward by day to escape predators—can also be considered migration.
浮游动物（微小的海洋生物）通常吃浮游植物，而其本身又是小鱼和其它动物的捕食对象。
Phytoplankton are typically eaten by zooplankton - tiny marine animals - which themselves are prey for small fish and other animals.
浮游动物包含各种各样的小生物体，从单细胞原生动物到水母、磷虾和桡足类动物，为海洋食物链提供了基本的链接。
The zooplankton, which encompass a wide range of little organisms from single-cell protozoa to creatures such as jellyfish, krill and copepods, provide the basic link in the ocean food chain.
应用推荐