Special skin keeps fish species alive on land

http://www.biologynews.net/archives/2010/11/08/special_skin_keeps_fish_species_alive_on_land.html

Summary – This article is about how Mangrove killifish can survive for two months out of water. At first, this stumped scientists, but now they have figured out that the skin of the killifish contains cells called ionocytes. These are also in the gills of normal fish, and they help regulate the salt to water ratio inside the fish. When the fish are out of water and in a moist place, their bodies can still carry out normal processes because the ionocytes are working hard and exchanging ions with the environment, keeping the fishes’ internal conditions stable. This is what this article was about.

Opinion – I think that this is actually very cool. The fact that these fish can survive on land without their gills working is amazing. It really makes you think because the first species on earth lived in the water and slowly came to land. Maybe these fish are like a descendent of those first animals who came out of the water and adapted to land to create the human species! It really makes you think as well, and what if the opposite could be true and land animals could survive under water for two months! This is my opinion on the article.