WEBVTT - Short Stuff: Do Fish Get Thirsty? 0:00:04.240 --> 0:00:06.440 Hey, and welcome to the Short Stuff. I'm Josh, and 0:00:06.480 --> 0:00:09.119 there's Chuck and this is short Stuff coming at you 0:00:09.520 --> 0:00:12.440 with a question I had never thought of until I 0:00:12.480 --> 0:00:15.760 was on our old site how Stuff Works, and came 0:00:15.760 --> 0:00:20.239 across an article by Nathan Chandler which asked a surprising 0:00:20.360 --> 0:00:22.400 question that makes a lot of sense if you think 0:00:22.400 --> 0:00:25.520 about it. Do fish which spend their lives in the 0:00:25.560 --> 0:00:30.760 water ever get thirsty? It's a great question, and I 0:00:30.760 --> 0:00:35.239 immediately thought of possibly one of my favorite, definitely one 0:00:35.240 --> 0:00:37.879 of my favorite all time comedies, maybe my favorite, the 0:00:37.920 --> 0:00:40.520 movie Arthur. I thought you were gonna say family Ties 0:00:41.840 --> 0:00:45.519 movie comedies Arthur. When Arthur says I must think that 0:00:45.560 --> 0:00:51.120 fish get awfully tired of eating seafood. That's one that's 0:00:51.120 --> 0:00:53.240 not even one of the good lines. I've never seen 0:00:53.280 --> 0:00:57.560 that one you're talking about, Arthur. Yeah, with Russell Brand. 0:00:58.000 --> 0:01:02.000 Oh god, you know I'm mad, I am right now. Yeah, 0:01:02.040 --> 0:01:04.679 I know you're a big Russell Brand fan. Even though 0:01:04.720 --> 0:01:07.520 Hodgeman was in that version, I think he really was. 0:01:07.880 --> 0:01:11.080 Um and uh yeah, that's my big connection to it. 0:01:11.200 --> 0:01:14.759 That's his claim to fame. So h No, I haven't 0:01:14.760 --> 0:01:17.000 seen Arthur, but I will just to keep this one going. 0:01:17.040 --> 0:01:19.440 How about that? Wait, you haven't seen the original either? 0:01:19.480 --> 0:01:22.840 For real, I've never seen any Arthur dude. It's one 0:01:22.840 --> 0:01:26.039 of the best comedies of all time. Uh. Doesn't it 0:01:26.080 --> 0:01:29.120 have that song between the Moon and New York City? Yeah? 0:01:29.160 --> 0:01:31.120 One of the great movie theme songs of all time. 0:01:31.280 --> 0:01:33.279 It is a good theme song. I know it's crazy, 0:01:33.319 --> 0:01:40.200 but it's true. Um. Nice. Uh. So let's keep going though, 0:01:40.200 --> 0:01:42.080 because we need to get back to this question. Do 0:01:42.160 --> 0:01:45.399 fish ever get thirsty? Right? Uh? And the first thing 0:01:45.440 --> 0:01:48.680 that Nathan Chandler points out, which is, you know, very 0:01:48.680 --> 0:01:51.840 easy and I think Nathan interviewed some people, uh that 0:01:52.400 --> 0:01:54.320 no more than we do about fish and their needs 0:01:54.320 --> 0:01:56.720 and wants. But the first thing they point out is like, 0:01:57.160 --> 0:01:59.160 that's kind of a weird question because you can't really 0:01:59.360 --> 0:02:02.240 tell whether an animal like thinks I'm thirsty or not. 0:02:02.320 --> 0:02:06.120 The real question is basically, do fish drink and do 0:02:06.200 --> 0:02:08.480 they need to hydrate like we do? Yeah, And Nathan 0:02:08.520 --> 0:02:10.520 Chainer is like, come on, this is what I meant 0:02:11.400 --> 0:02:16.280 pencil neck right? Um? So uh that that is ultimately 0:02:16.320 --> 0:02:19.399 the question that we're after. So um, if you are 0:02:19.480 --> 0:02:22.280 ever thirsty, you know, there's it's kind of like hunger, 0:02:22.440 --> 0:02:25.240 like you have a sensation that tells you you need 0:02:25.280 --> 0:02:27.600 to eat food. We need energy. This is the same 0:02:27.600 --> 0:02:29.360 thing your body sends you all sorts of cues and 0:02:29.400 --> 0:02:31.880 signals that says you need to drink some water because 0:02:31.880 --> 0:02:34.600 we need to be hydrated. And the whole point of 0:02:34.639 --> 0:02:38.440 staying hydrated is not just to drink water, which is fun, 0:02:38.520 --> 0:02:41.520 but that's not the point. The point is that we 0:02:41.639 --> 0:02:44.360 have all sorts of like little minerals and salts and 0:02:44.440 --> 0:02:48.160 electro lights, according to the good people at Gatorade, in 0:02:48.200 --> 0:02:51.000 our bodies that we need to keep at a certain level, 0:02:51.080 --> 0:02:52.919 and we keep them at a certain level of certain 0:02:52.960 --> 0:02:57.520 concentration by regulating our water intake. Right, So that's how 0:02:57.520 --> 0:02:59.919 we stay hydrated. And that's the point of staying hydrated. 0:03:00.240 --> 0:03:03.680 And it turns out that fish basically have to do 0:03:03.720 --> 0:03:07.320 the same thing despite living in water, or actually I 0:03:07.320 --> 0:03:11.800 guess because they live in water. Yeah, This whole process 0:03:11.919 --> 0:03:17.240 is called osma regulation, and fish do this. You know, 0:03:17.360 --> 0:03:20.320 we're very closely related to fish, so it's not the 0:03:20.440 --> 0:03:23.120 most different process for them. Even though we don't have gills. 0:03:24.000 --> 0:03:25.240 It would be kind of fun if we did, but 0:03:25.320 --> 0:03:28.600 we don't. But their kidneys are a big part of 0:03:28.600 --> 0:03:32.680 this obviously in maintaining just like with us, those salt levels. Uh. 0:03:32.720 --> 0:03:34.840 And then they do have those gills, and those gills 0:03:34.880 --> 0:03:38.960 have cells that exchange water and salt, and again just 0:03:39.000 --> 0:03:45.560 trying to keep the right uh electro political balance. Yeah, 0:03:45.600 --> 0:03:47.320 I think that's a great way to put it. Or 0:03:47.360 --> 0:03:49.800 I could just say electro light balance. Okay, I like 0:03:49.840 --> 0:03:54.280 the electrolytical all right, so you're gonna keep it in. Well, 0:03:54.320 --> 0:03:56.320 I mean I'm not gonna I'm not gonna cut it out. 0:03:56.960 --> 0:03:59.520 I've said much dumber things. I don't think it's dumb 0:03:59.560 --> 0:04:01.280 at all. I think sing and chuck. I have to 0:04:01.280 --> 0:04:03.840 say if if that isn't a term, you're just coined 0:04:03.840 --> 0:04:05.840 a term, because I'm going to spend the rest of 0:04:05.880 --> 0:04:12.720 my day's promoting electrolytical Okay, great. So, Um, the it 0:04:12.760 --> 0:04:16.760 turns out though, this OSMO regulation, I guess the um, 0:04:16.880 --> 0:04:20.719 the process or the systems or the components for carrying 0:04:20.720 --> 0:04:25.240 out OSMO regulation are the same basically across fish species. 0:04:26.120 --> 0:04:27.800 You know, similar enough that you could call them the 0:04:27.800 --> 0:04:31.800 same for our purposes today. Um. But what they do 0:04:31.960 --> 0:04:34.240 or how they do it, or what their goal is 0:04:34.320 --> 0:04:36.800 depends on what kind of water the fish lives in 0:04:37.000 --> 0:04:40.160 salt water or freshwater, or if the fish can kind 0:04:40.160 --> 0:04:42.600 of transcend both kinds of water. And I propose we 0:04:42.680 --> 0:04:45.120 take a break and come back and talk about the 0:04:45.160 --> 0:05:20.600 setup that I just did. Sounds great, all right, freshwater fish? 0:05:20.640 --> 0:05:22.919 Should we start there? Yeah? I think so. It's a 0:05:22.920 --> 0:05:25.719 good place to start your common large mouth bass. Let's say, 0:05:26.000 --> 0:05:28.680 sure that can eat a squirrel during a squirrel stampede. 0:05:30.160 --> 0:05:34.600 That's right. I forgot about that. So I learned a 0:05:34.640 --> 0:05:37.679 couple of interesting things here. One is that freshwater fish 0:05:37.720 --> 0:05:41.880 don't drink like actively because it's just gonna dilute their 0:05:41.920 --> 0:05:45.480 blood and other fluids in their body really quickly. Um. 0:05:45.640 --> 0:05:49.120 Obviously they're what's inside their body, their tissue and their 0:05:49.120 --> 0:05:51.480 blood is going to be saltier than where they are 0:05:51.520 --> 0:05:55.000 because they're in freshwater. Uh, so they would just act 0:05:55.040 --> 0:05:57.799 as a big salt water or I guess salt sponge 0:05:58.440 --> 0:06:02.560 if they were to drink too much. So. Uh. The 0:06:02.560 --> 0:06:07.200 other thing I learned is that they urinate. They're constantly urinating, right, 0:06:07.440 --> 0:06:08.920 that's the only way to say it. And I did 0:06:08.960 --> 0:06:11.039 not know this. So the and the urine they pe 0:06:11.200 --> 0:06:15.880 out is super super watery. Um, because again, they're they're 0:06:15.920 --> 0:06:19.440 retaining and keeping ahold of as much of those salts 0:06:19.440 --> 0:06:23.680 and minerals and electro lights that they possibly can um 0:06:23.760 --> 0:06:27.440 because it's just they're not getting it from their surrounding environment, 0:06:27.480 --> 0:06:30.080 that is the fresh water. So like you said, they 0:06:30.240 --> 0:06:35.599 they they they are preventing from their solution in their 0:06:35.600 --> 0:06:40.360 blood from becoming two diluted. That's the point of their 0:06:40.800 --> 0:06:45.000 OSMO regulation. Correct, that's right for the freshies, okay. And 0:06:45.040 --> 0:06:47.280 so if they do it correctly, if their cells and 0:06:47.320 --> 0:06:50.880 their gills and their kidneys are working properly, they're streaming 0:06:50.920 --> 0:06:54.640 out there accepting salt for the body wherever it can 0:06:54.640 --> 0:06:57.640 get it, and they're peeing out tons and tons of 0:06:57.800 --> 0:07:00.680 water that they're taking on and keep being the salt. 0:07:01.040 --> 0:07:04.360 But um, if you go to a salt water like 0:07:04.400 --> 0:07:09.039 the Sea saltwater area, you find pretty much the opposite 0:07:09.120 --> 0:07:13.000 process happening for the same reason. Yes, And the cool 0:07:13.040 --> 0:07:16.960 thing here is that saltwater fish actually drink through their mouths, 0:07:17.320 --> 0:07:20.320 and they drink through their mouths to stay hydrated. So 0:07:20.440 --> 0:07:24.360 they're drinking this ocean water and so the big rub 0:07:24.440 --> 0:07:28.320 there is they have to avoid losing water too much 0:07:28.880 --> 0:07:31.760 to that salty environment. Out there, and they also have 0:07:31.880 --> 0:07:34.840 to keep from getting too salty, Like you know, they're 0:07:34.920 --> 0:07:36.680 drinking in the saltwater and they have to keep that 0:07:36.760 --> 0:07:39.680 excess salt out, so their kidneys are kind of not 0:07:39.800 --> 0:07:42.520 working over time. They're doing their regular job, like they 0:07:42.520 --> 0:07:44.680 don't know how hard they're working compared to other kidneys, 0:07:45.480 --> 0:07:48.760 but their kidneys are removing that salt and conserving the water. 0:07:49.400 --> 0:07:51.520 And then they have those salt cells and their gills 0:07:51.920 --> 0:07:54.720 pumping salt into the water. So again you have that 0:07:54.840 --> 0:07:58.400 same exchange going on. It's just sort of backwards or 0:07:58.480 --> 0:08:00.880 the opposite. And you can imagine, and their urine is 0:08:00.960 --> 0:08:04.760 super salty urine and um kind of light on the water, right, 0:08:04.800 --> 0:08:08.160 it's super concentrated solution that they're peeing out. I would 0:08:08.160 --> 0:08:11.280 think so, And then I said this earlier. There are 0:08:11.360 --> 0:08:14.920 fish that can exist in both freshwater and saltwater. And 0:08:14.960 --> 0:08:17.240 now that you know right now that you know about 0:08:17.240 --> 0:08:20.280 OSMO regulation, it's like, well, wait a minute, how does 0:08:20.280 --> 0:08:23.200 that work? And you can take the salmon as a 0:08:23.240 --> 0:08:25.960 really good example, because when the salmon go to spawn, 0:08:26.480 --> 0:08:29.680 they go to spawn and freshwater, usually upstream in some 0:08:29.840 --> 0:08:32.320 river because they like to make things hard on themselves, 0:08:32.800 --> 0:08:36.000 which means that when they come to spawn, they leave 0:08:36.520 --> 0:08:41.600 their saltwater habitat and enter a freshwater habitat. Yeah, and 0:08:41.640 --> 0:08:43.320 it was it was interesting when I was reading this, 0:08:43.400 --> 0:08:44.720 I was kind of like, well, how in the world, 0:08:45.200 --> 0:08:47.720 like do they have had their organs evolved to be 0:08:47.760 --> 0:08:51.280 able to do both? And it kind of has in 0:08:51.320 --> 0:08:53.320 a way, but not both at the same time, because 0:08:53.600 --> 0:08:57.040 salmon are really smart. So what they do is they 0:08:57.080 --> 0:09:00.200 don't go straight from their freshwater right into the saltwa water. 0:09:00.760 --> 0:09:03.480 They hang out a little bit and what they what's 0:09:03.520 --> 0:09:07.319 called like a staging area before they complete their migration, 0:09:07.840 --> 0:09:10.199 and it's located in a space where they get a 0:09:10.240 --> 0:09:12.360 little bit of the freshwater and a little bit of 0:09:12.360 --> 0:09:14.600 the salt water and they just they just hang out 0:09:14.679 --> 0:09:19.560 until they regulate, right. Um. And it's just it's as 0:09:19.600 --> 0:09:22.320 simple as that that they use brackish water to kind 0:09:22.360 --> 0:09:25.440 of like prep themselves for the changeover. And I would 0:09:25.440 --> 0:09:28.040 guess they do this the opposite when they go back 0:09:28.040 --> 0:09:33.160 into the sea again or the saltwater environment. The problem is, 0:09:33.520 --> 0:09:36.760 like everything, there's a there's a conundrum that they're facing 0:09:37.040 --> 0:09:41.120 thanks to climate change where um sea ice is breaking 0:09:41.240 --> 0:09:44.480 up more and more traveling further and further south and 0:09:44.559 --> 0:09:49.480 into um salmon's breeding grounds and there it's actually the 0:09:49.520 --> 0:09:52.200 fresh water that's melting off of the sea ice is 0:09:52.240 --> 0:09:55.280 affecting the brackish water so that the salmon have less 0:09:55.400 --> 0:09:59.640 chance of a to to use that area as a 0:09:59.679 --> 0:10:02.480 stage area. Yeah, it kind of just screws up their 0:10:02.480 --> 0:10:05.560 staging area because they're they're used to that area being 0:10:06.640 --> 0:10:08.640 having a certain amount of salinity, and then when you 0:10:08.679 --> 0:10:11.640 introduce that melting sea ice, it just screws everything up. 0:10:12.640 --> 0:10:16.160 Yet another thing that's happening. It is so chuck. How 0:10:16.240 --> 0:10:23.160 much seawater can you ingest at a time, like me, um, 0:10:23.280 --> 0:10:25.760 I don't know, three and a half percent of my 0:10:25.800 --> 0:10:29.160 body weight, No, three and a half percent salt, I 0:10:29.200 --> 0:10:32.679 think by weight. Like, you know, if you're trapped, We've 0:10:32.679 --> 0:10:34.559 talked about this before, if you're like stranded out in 0:10:34.559 --> 0:10:37.120 the ocean, you know you will die if you just 0:10:37.240 --> 0:10:40.400 continue to drink seawater because you're gonna dehydrate, but you 0:10:40.400 --> 0:10:43.280 can't drink a little bit of it. Yeah, I don't 0:10:43.320 --> 0:10:46.000 know if we should advise anybody doing to do that though, 0:10:46.360 --> 0:10:49.439 I don't think so. But you're you're not gonna die like, 0:10:49.760 --> 0:10:52.080 all right, let's forget your stranded You're just on the 0:10:52.080 --> 0:10:54.240 beach one day and you go, like, get a small 0:10:54.280 --> 0:10:57.199 cup of ocean water and drink it. You'll be fine. 0:10:57.440 --> 0:10:59.600 I don't think we should tell people to do that either. 0:11:00.320 --> 0:11:04.200 Let's just stay away from the encouraging drinking seawater in general. 0:11:04.280 --> 0:11:07.120 All right, how about this, You're in your house and 0:11:07.160 --> 0:11:09.360 you take some very clean water and clean table salt 0:11:09.400 --> 0:11:12.319 and mix it together. You could drink that and you 0:11:12.520 --> 0:11:14.440 a little bit of that and you'd be okay. No, 0:11:14.800 --> 0:11:16.960 I'm still not okay with that either. All right, well, 0:11:16.960 --> 0:11:18.439 then why do you ask how much we could drink? 0:11:18.720 --> 0:11:20.720 I just want to know how much you personally could. 0:11:23.760 --> 0:11:30.160 Is short? Stuff out? Short stuff is out? Everybody. Stuff 0:11:30.160 --> 0:11:32.160 you should know is a production of I Heart Radio. 0:11:32.679 --> 0:11:35.160 For more podcasts my heart Radio, visit the i heart 0:11:35.240 --> 0:11:38.160 Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your 0:11:38.200 --> 0:11:38.920 favorite shows.