Adaptions needed to be made to adapt in new zealand( if it was introduced)

Identify a consumer in the intertidal zone- Crayfish are secondary consumers, and feed of herbivores such as kina.

Identify a decomposer in the intertidal zone- Decomposers in the intertidal zone compose of mainly bacteria and fungi. They feed of the remains and waste of animals.

Overfishing- Overfishing of one species can affect an entire ecosystem. If the number of predators in a food chain is significantly less, than the prey will eventually decrease. Biodiversity of an ecosystem will significantly decrease

This crayfish feeds on kina, sea star, shellfish, crabs etc.

Crayfish have a spiny armored body, made up of two sections. A hardened carapace which protect the main body organs, they also have a flexible muscular tail. Their Pleopods (under the abdomen) are smaller than most animals, they use it for carrying their eggs instead of swimming.

Their large antennae are used to defend and fight. They also have two smaller antennae (antennules) to sense chemicals and movement in the water

As the spiny lobster grows it molts, so it loses its hard protective exoskeleton. It is now vulnerable to predators for up two days until it grows a much larger exoskeleton.

The crayfish rely on their 5 legs to move around in the ocean, while crayfish are not known to swim a lot. This is because they are much heavier than water. They only swim for brief periods. They walk on the seafloor for the remainder of their life.

A crayfish swims backwards by flexing its tail, however it is not known to swim a lot, Therefore it spends most of its time on the seafloor. Their limbs that are supposed to aid the organism in swimming (pleopods) are really used for the carrying its eggs and walking across the seafloor.

Crayfish live in caves,holes and crevices with their family. They come out at night, meaning they are nocturnal. They are most likely nocturnal as a few of the prey are nocturnal.

Extra IMPORTANT: My animal does not have any adaption to prevent it from drying it out as it is constantly in water. Instead, I will name 2 other adaptions.

Molting:As the spiny lobster grows it molts, so it loses its hard protective exoskeleton. It is now vulnerable to predators for up two days until it grows a much larger exoskeleton. Molting enables the crayfish to grow. A young crayfish will molt 25 times a year while, an adult male crayfish will molt twice a year and a female crayfish will molt once a year. After the adult stage, crayfish will only molt once a year.

Water temperature: Can change currents, which can affect the migration patterns of the crayfish. This will result in the crayfish being sent in different directions compared to its usual migration patterns. The water could also end up moving at abnormal speeds affecting the crayfishes lifestyle.

Wave movement- Crayfish go against the current when migrating, however if the wave movement changes it will affect the crayfish migration.

Amount of light- The amount of light an organism receives can heavily affect an environment. Light works completely different underwater then it does on land. Light moves in a straight line unless its reflected on something, whereas once it hits the water light rays will bend and scatter throughout the water. This creates the strange perceptions of marine life, and also the perceptions we see when looking at the water. If an ecosystem in the intertidal zone receives less less light, it will create a chain reaction resulting in a weaker society. This starts off when the plants in the ecosystem receive less light which is need in order to complete the process of photosynthesis. Photosynthesis creates oxygen and glucose, and is also the main food source of herbivores or producers. Now the producers are affected, and soon priamry and secondary consumers will be affected.

PH- pH (potential hydrogen) is the measurement of how much hydrogen is in the subject being measured, which can show the acidity/alkalinity of the subject. PH can affect the intertidal zone as, if its to acidic/basic it be inhabited for the organisms in the zone. It may end up burning up the bodies of the organisms. Their bodies can only react with a certain range of pH.

Phytoplankton are tiny unicellular organisms, that are able to photosynthesize and float enough to the top layer of the water. This includes organisms such as micro-algae and bacteria.

There mouth is located at the front section of its head (cephalothorax). They have fourteen attachments surrounding the mouth that help the crayfish to eat. These appendages manipulate the food, so that it is edible for the crayfish. It is then passed down to eat.