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search  Demersal animals live on or near the bottom of the sea
or lakes.[1] The term is usually applied to fish.  They occupy
the sea floors and lake beds, which usually consist of mud,
sand, gravel or rocks.[1] In coastal waters they are found on or
near the continental shelf, and in deep waters they are found on
or near the continental slope or along the continental rise.
They are not generally found in the deepest waters, such as
abyssal depths or on the abyssal plain, but they can be found
around seamounts and islands. The word demersal comes from the
Latin demergere, which means to sink.  Demersal fish are bottom
feeders. They can be contrasted with pelagic fish which live and
feed away from the bottom in the open water column. Demersal
fish fillets contain little fish oil (one to four percent),
whereas pelagic fish can contain up to 30 percent.
References[change | change source]    1. 1.0 1.1 Walrond C Carl
. "Coastal fish - Fish of the open se