The first step of the water cycle is evaporation. About 85% of the water vapor in the air comes from water that evaporated from the oceans. The other 15% comes from evapotranspiration, which is a catch-all term for water that evaporates from over land. This includes water vapor produced by plants during transpiration, water from lakes, streams, puddles and soil moisture, direct evaporation of snow and even water vapor from the breath of animals.