Mudskippers – Transcript
We all know that fish can swim, but did you know there’s a type of fish that can also walk? Mudskippers are small fish that usually live in coastal waters or mangrove swamps. They are not very big. In fact, most mudskippers are less than 10 centimeters long. Unlike other fish, mudskippers can breathe even when they are out of water.
Mudskippers get their name from the fact that they are able to walk (or skip) across the mud by using their front fins like little legs. In addition to walking, mudskippers can also climb rocks and trees! They can do this because their fins are like suckers that grab onto things.
Most fish have eyes on the sides of their heads, but the eyes of mudskippers are on top of their heads, like a frog. Eyes like these are very useful because they help the mudskipper to easily see things above and below the water at the same time. This helps protect them from being eaten by birds or other fish.
Mudskippers spend much of their time on land building burrows in the soft mud. These burrows are like little houses the mudskippers use to protect themselves from the sun. If they get too hot, mudskippers will go into their burrows to cool down. When the water rises, the burrows become hiding places to protect them from other fish. They also lay their eggs in the burrows and use them to trap air that they can use to breathe when they need it.
