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Kids > I'm Alive > Fish facts Fish facts  bluegillOur Indiana
lakes and streams are an amazing ecosystem filled with what may
seem to be alien life forms compared with what we see on land.
I work at Versailles State Park. I see many fish in our lake,
some as small as minnows and some as large as channel catfish
and bass. No matter which fish I see, they all have some of the
same characteristics. It's these traits that make fish unique
and help them live underwater. Let's come up on the land by our
nature center and explore some ways fish differ from land
animals.  People can swim underwater, but there is a point at
which even the best swimmer can no longer stay there; they have
to surface for air. So how can fish live underwater all the
time?  Humans have lungs to get us the oxygen we need, but fish
have gills that take oxygen out of the water and provide air so
they can breathe.  That's