My friend thought long and hard about this situation.
If you place one fish in a glass of milk and another similar fish in a glass of beer, which would survive longer? They figured beer but the fish would be drunk or something like that.
What do you guys think?
Both would die rather quickly unless they were very small (smaller SA/V ratio means better ability to meet energy demands anaerobically). Fish need oxygen. Unless you shake up the milk or beer the fish isn't going to be getting much. More than that, the CO2 in the beer will change decrease the pH of the fish's blood and likely cause it to die. The alcohol sure as hell wouldn't help either. The milk fish wouldn't fair much better. Milk is slightly alkaline I believe, but the thickness of the fluid would make it hard for the fish to get much oxygen I would think.
Your best bet would probably be either a lung fish (fish that can actually breathe air as an adaptation to living in oxygen deficient waters), or a fish that's good at osmoregulating (like a salmon that has to switch from drastically difference salinities as it goes from sea water to freshwater).
Regardless, there's only one way to find out. You'd of course have to repeat the experiment many times to see if there was any significant difference. I don't really recommend it. Interesting question though.
Fishsticks!
Well done Guppy!
(Well done refering to the post not how I like my fish although beer batter deep fried bass are pretty good tasting)
The Candiru or toothpick fish swims up a urine stream into the bladder and calls that home.
My money is on it no matter if you put it in beer or milk.
The one in the beer dies first because the drunkard who is drinking it wouldn't notice the poor critter swimming around in the bottom of his glass, and it'd be a goner along with the last of the suds.