00:00Welcome back to Fact Space.
00:02We've all heard the phrase, drink like a fish, but what about drown like a fish?
00:06Today, we're busting a common misconception.
00:09Fish don't drown.
00:111. How fish breathe
00:13First, let's understand how fish survive underwater.
00:17They don't have lungs like us.
00:19Instead, they have gills.
00:21Gills are made of feathery filaments with lots of tiny blood vessels.
00:25As water passes over these gills, the oxygen dissolved in the water diffuses into the fish's bloodstream and carbon dioxide diffuses out.
00:34It's a remarkably efficient system.
00:372. Drowning is about lungs.
00:39So why can't they drown?
00:41Because drowning is specifically about the lungs filling with water and preventing oxygen from entering the bloodstream.
00:48Since fish don't have lungs and use gills, the concept of drowning doesn't apply to them in the same way it does to air-breathing animals.
00:573. They can suffocate, though.
00:59However, a fish can definitely suffocate.
01:02If the water doesn't have enough dissolved oxygen, or if their gills get damaged or clogged with pollutants, they can't extract the oxygen they need.
01:11Think of it like being in a room with no air for us.
01:14They have the breathing apparatus, but no usable air.
01:194. Gill trauma on land.
01:21Taking a fish out of water also causes it to suffocate, but it's not drowning.
01:26Their delicate gills are designed to work in water.
01:29And when exposed to air, they collapse and can't effectively absorb oxygen.
01:34It's like trying to breathe through a closed fist.
01:375. The frozen in ice myth.
01:39You might see videos of fish frozen solid and then coming back to life.
01:436. While some fish can survive being frozen in very specific, protective conditions, like being encased in ice that keeps their gills moist and offers very slow freezing,
01:53a fish truly frozen solid will almost certainly die.
01:56Their cells would rupture, and their gill function would stop.
02:00The common perception of them drowning in ice is simply a misunderstanding of how they breathe.
02:06So next time you see a fish, remember, it's not worried about drowning, but it definitely needs its oxygen.
02:13Join us next time for more interesting facts.
02:16Bye.
02:16Bye.
02:16Bye.
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