It’s natural for humans and land animals to drown, but what about aquatic animals such as fish or other marine life? Are they “drowned”? In fact, they will also die from lack of oxygen, but not quite like humans drown.
According to reports from Live Science, scientist Frances Withow of the marine conservation nonprofit Oceana pointed out that marine animals need oxygen to survive just like humans do, but they depend on soluble dissolved oxygen. in water, while humans breathe oxygen in the air.
Most fish breathe when water flows through the gills. If the gills are damaged or if water cannot enter, the fish can choke and die. Technically, they don’t “suffer” because they “don’t breathe water”, but they will die from lack of oxygen.
Mr. Frances says fishing gear such as hooks can damage the gills of fish. Diseases or bacteria can also prevent fish gills from removing oxygen from the water. Just as if people have respiratory diseases, it will be very difficult to breathe.
Mr Frances said that although there are fish that let water flow through their gills when they are resting, most fish have to swim continuously to let water flow through them in order to to breathe. If they are caught by fishing nets, they can die of suffocation.
Mr. Frances mentioned that sharks need fins to swim and breathe. But some fishermen cut their fins after catching the sharks and threw them back into the sea. Not only is it cruel, but it’s also bad for most sharks. Sharks without their fins will be eaten by predators or starve or suffocate.
As for other marine animals such as sea turtles and dolphins, just like humans, they breathe oxygen from the air, so they can only breathe when they are floating on the surface of the sea. they are trapped at the bottom of the sea by fishing nets, they will also die from lack of oxygen.
