Just a friendly reminder

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This photo implies that food going into the fish is excreted as ammonia, but I keep hearing the majority of ammonia from fish comes from the gills. I don't know which is the case, or if both are. Anybody know?
 
This photo implies that food going into the fish is excreted as ammonia, but I keep hearing the majority of ammonia from fish comes from the gills. I don't know which is the case, or if both are. Anybody know?

Nothing comes off the gills. Do you let of ammonia when you inhale and exhale? lol Salts and water pass through the gills, and the differ depend on marine and freshwater fish (and also how you have acclimated them i.e. the realm of brackish fish)

Here's another insightful picture.

fish_-_excretory_system_-_freshwater_vs._marine.jpg


The basics of fish biology (ichthology) are crucial for any serious enthusiast.
 
Excellent pics to show the basics ont he nitrogen cycle. Really should be posted with the article it comes from though

I was going with the "for those who only read the pictures" approach. Figuring most are that too lazy to google the words "Nitrgen Cycle" would be too lazy to read an article with more than 30 characters haha
 
Well i guess that lays the gills ammonia myth to rest. I always wondered why fish would have a mechanism to excrete ammonia through their gills when urine is so concentrated in ammonia already. Thank you for the info. As far as salts go, is sodium chloride the only salt freshwater fish benefit from or is that a singular example? I know they make aquarium salt for fw tanks but the included salts and concentrations of the blends are hard to find

Sent from over there
 
Well i guess that lays the gills ammonia myth to rest. I always wondered why fish would have a mechanism to excrete ammonia through their gills when urine is so concentrated in ammonia already. Thank you for the info. As far as salts go, is sodium chloride the only salt freshwater fish benefit from or is that a singular example? I know they make aquarium salt for fw tanks but the included salts and concentrations of the blends are hard to find

Sent from over there

Salts are nothing more than Ionic compounds and different kinds of salts are found in a variety of freshwater ecosystems. NaCl is the most common in nature, but other salts occur do to erosion and ground water release. Blue Springs in Florida is an interesting example. The salts that come out of the spring are not NaCl, (and I couldn't tell you specifically they are), but due to there presence they harbor an diverse array of both fresh and marine species. Tarpon, Red drum, snook, flounder, ladyfish and mullet are seen along side plecos, pacus, tilapia, and native freshwater fish like gar, bowfish, bass, and other sunfish. This alone suggests that these fresh and marine fish are osmoregulating with different salts.

Salinity reports measuring the exact compositions of salts can be found in a lot of scientific literature. Perhaps reading up on those, and making your own formula could be beneficial, but like I said most fish have an incredible ability to osmoregulate. That's why tilapia are so invasive. They can survive extreme salinity, low oxygen levels, and have a wide temperate range.
 
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