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It’s officially summer in the northern hemisphere. With record-breaking high temperatures already being recorded in the U.S., Canada, parts of Europe, and the Arctic, it looks like 2021 is going to be another climate change-intensified scorcher.
If you’re in need of a way to keep cool—really cool—how about a little cold water swimming? And what could be more refreshingly chilling than a dip in a polar sea? Well, as tempting as that may seem when the thermometer reads 116°F, unlike polar fishes, we gill-free types are just not equipped to last long in cold water. So what do our piscine pals have that we don’t to help them survive frigid marine temperatures? Bodies fortified with antifreeze.
To manage the challenges of a life lived in icy seas, Arctic and Antarctic fish species that aren’t able to migrate to warmer waters evolved with antifreeze proteins in their blood and body tissues. These protective proteins lower the freezing point of polar fishes to below water temperature. When they come into contact with ice crystals either on their skin or gills or through eating or drinking, the antifreeze binds to the ice to prevent the scaly swimmers from turning into fish-icles. Now, how cool is that?
If you’d like to learn more about which animals have adapted to life in the coldest environment on the planet, the New Zealand government has created a splendidly informative poster of the wildlife occupying the world’s largest marine protected area in Antarctica’s Ross Sea.
And if you’re keen to swim with fishes of the non-polar variety this summer, courtesy of The Guardian, scientist Heather Massey has some tips on how to avoid hypothermia while paddling in open waters.
Fishy business aside, just a reminder that extreme heat, like extreme cold, can be life-threatening. If you’re suffering through triple-digit temperatures and can’t make it to a pool or the beach, Google the location of your nearest cooling center and head on over. For tips on how to manage a heat wave without air conditioning, check out this list from MedicineNet. Keep cool. Stay safe.
