This fish blog will answer the major question, “Is fish a reptile?” we will also discuss the major difference between a reptile and a fish, the major similarities between a reptile and a fish, and how you can identify whether the pet you are having is a reptile or a fish.
Is fish a reptile?
No, fish are not reptiles. Reptiles can live on both lands and in the water while fish only live in water. Fish and reptiles have many similarities like they are both cold-blooded and both have ectothermic metabolism.
What are the major differences between a fish and a reptile?
Following are the major differences between a fish and a reptile:
Reptiles can live on land and in water
Reptiles can live both on land and in the water while on the other hand, fish can only live in water so fishes are different from reptiles. Reptiles can move from water to land and from land to water freely like crocodiles. Reptiles can live in the mud as that of a crocodile.
Reptiles can breathe both in water and on land
Reptiles have lungs and gills as well and they can both be on land and in water, on the other hand, fishes can only breathe underwater because they have only gills so they cannot utilize air oxygen and are only able to extract oxygen from the water.
Reptiles can live partly in water although most of their life span is on land, especially in muddy water.
Reptiles have scales on their bodies
Reptiles have thick scales on their bodies which will protect the body while they move on the ground. On the other hand, fishes have scales too but they are not thick and cannot save them from predators and something like injury.
Reptiles have limbs
Fishes have paired or unpaired fins to swim in the water while on the other hand, most reptiles have limbs that help them in swimming. The limbs are not that specialized to help them move faster while on the other hand, fins are specialized to move faster and faster in the water.
What are the key similarities between fishes and reptiles?
Following are the major similarities between the fishes and the reptiles:
Reptiles and fishes both are cold-blooded animals
Reptiles and fishes both are cold-blooded animals. They can shift their temperature according to the needs of the body. They can regulate their temperature when the environment around them changes to survive in such an environment.
Reptiles and fishes both have ectothermic metabolism
Ectothermic metabolism means that the animals do not need the heat of metabolism to maintain the constant temperature of the body. Fishes and reptiles both do not need the heat of metabolism to maintain their body temperature so they do have ectothermic metabolism.
Reptiles and fishes both are vertebrates
Vertebrates are animals that have a backbone in their skeleton. Both fishes and reptiles have vertebral columns which means they have backbones in their skeleton which enable them to move their vertebral column while swimming in the water.
The vertebral columns are used to give support to the body and absence or damage to this can affect the function of limbs in the body.
Reptiles and fishes both lay eggs
Reptiles and fish both lay eggs and give rise to babies. In the case of fishes, females lay eggs in water, and on the other hand, the male fish will release sperm in the water which will fertilize the egg. There are other species too that deposit sperm in the female tract but most of them follow the same pattern.
In the case of reptiles, the females lay eggs in the mud from which babies are born. Reptiles spend most of the time of their life on land so their babies are very rough and tough and have strong scales on their bodies.
How can you tell if your pet is a fish or a reptile?
Following are the things you should be looking at to check if your pet is fish or a reptile:
- The first thing you must be looking at is if it has fins or limbs when it grows, usually it is difficult to differentiate between a fin and a limb in young ones but once your pet is grown it must be easy for you to differentiate between a fin and a limb.
- The next thing you would be looking at is where they hide, in the case of reptiles they hide in the mud like that crocodile while in the case of fishes, they do not hide in mud.
Conclusion
In this fish blog, we entertained our important question, “Is fish a reptile?” we also discussed the major difference between a reptile and a fish, the major similarities between a reptile and a fish, and how you can identify whether your pet is a reptile or a fish.
