by changing their density
Some animals change their depth by changing their density. Recall that things that are denser than their surroundings sink while those that are less dense than their surroundings float. Most fish have a swim bladder, a special sac that is filled with gases from their blood. When the fish's swim bladder is full, it is less dense than the surrounding water and the fish will rise towards the surface. Another property of water that affects lakes is the unique changes in density during phase changes. The density of most substances increases when a liquid becomes a solid. This is not so for water: Solid water is actually less dense than liquid water. It is for this reason that ice floats. Can you imagine a world where ice sank? Lakes would freeze from the bottom up, killing many fish. Frozen water in the Polar Regions would sink and change the ocean levels. The fact that ice floats is essential for the survival of many aquatic ecosystems and ultimately life on Earth. Besides the changes in density, there are other ways in which the phase changes of water have significant impacts. When water is trapped in small cracks in rocks, it will expand as it freezes and break up the rock causing weathering. The transpiration evaporation of water from a good-sized tree can move 1800 liters of water out of the ground in a single day. Sublimation, the phase change between solid and gas, is responsible for the formation of frost. As you can see, water has many special properties that make its role in nature unique. It is considered the "universal solvent because its bipolar molecule enables it to dissolve a wide variety of substances. Water is the only substance that occurs naturally in all three states; solid, liquid, and gas. Water is truly a miracle for life!.