Sea Animals That Eat Plankton

Plankton comes in a variety of shapes and colors, and though they are small, these species play an important role in the everyday life cycle under the sea. Several sea creatures depend on a type or subspecies of plankton to survive. Without this food source, these animals may suffer disastrous consequences.

  1. Shrimp and Krill

    • Both shrimp and krill rely on different types of plankton as a food source. Plankton is particularly important during the larval stage because it is readily available for shrimp and krill to eat. As they mature and develop, shrimp and krill begin to look for other food sources.

    Jellyfish

    • Jellyfish are big eaters. The carnivorous creature has a mouth that is located underneath the bell-shaped body. What is on the menu depends largely on whatever the jellyfish's long tentacles can catch while drifting in the ocean currents. All of the tentacles have thousands of cnidocytes with stinging capsules or nematocysts, which contain venom. Most of the food that gets caught includes zooplankton, but the jellyfish will also eat smaller fishes, eggs and the larvae of other sea creatures.

    Lobsters

    • Lobsters are sea creatures that like to eat a variety of marine life. Lobsters eat plankton, but they will also munch on krill, shrimp, prawns, sea urchins and shellfish like mussels and crabs. Lobsters may eat seaweed on occasion, and they will also chow down on their own shells after the old has molted off the crustacean's body. Nocturnal creatures, lobsters find their food by smelling through their antennae. Food is eaten by utilizing the teeth in their stomachs.

    Small Fish

    • Many small fish species eat plankton as a major food source. One of those types includes the Atlantic herring. The Atlantic herring is a small bait fish that can be found in coastal waters. The fish feed on small planktonic copepods during their first year of life. Afterward, the adult fish feasts on copepods. Other small fish that eat plankton include sardines, menhaden and herring.