What is the Difference Between Ammonotelic Ureotelic and Uricotelic?
🆚 Go to Comparative Table 🆚The difference between ammonotelic, ureotelic, and uricotelic organisms lies in the type of waste product they excrete and the process by which they eliminate these waste products from their bodies. Here is a comparison of the three types of organisms:
Ammonotelic Organisms:
- Excrete ammonia as their waste product.
- Ammonia is highly toxic and requires sufficient water for excretion.
- Examples include fishes and aquatic amphibians.
Ureotelic Organisms:
- Excrete urea as their waste product.
- Urea is less toxic than ammonia and requires less water for excretion.
- Examples include mammals, amphibians, and sharks.
Uricotelic Organisms:
- Excrete uric acid as their waste product.
- Uric acid is the least toxic among the three waste products and requires very little water for excretion.
- Examples include birds, reptiles, and many insects.
Different excretory strategies have evolved in various animal groups to adapt to their unique water and energy demands. Aquatic animals, such as most fish species, are ammonotelic, while terrestrial animals have evolved to be uricotelic or ureotelic due to the need for water conservation.
Comparative Table: Ammonotelic Ureotelic vs Uricotelic
Here is a table comparing the differences between ammonotelic, ureotelic, and uricotelic animals:
Feature | Ammonotelic | Ureotelic | Uricotelic |
---|---|---|---|
Nitrogenous Waste | Ammonia | Urea | Uric Acid |
Water Requirement | High | Low | Very Low |
Habitat | Aquatic | Terrestrial | Terrestrial |
Examples of Animals | Fish, protozoans, crustaceans, platyhelminths | Mammals, frogs | Birds, reptiles, insects, terrestrial arthropods |
Ammonotelic animals excrete nitrogenous waste in the form of ammonia, which is highly toxic and requires sufficient water for excretion. Most aquatic animals, including fish, protozoans, crustaceans, and platyhelminths, are ammonotelic.
Ureotelic animals excrete nitrogenous waste in the form of urea, which is less toxic and requires less water for excretion. Mammals and frogs are examples of ureotelic animals.
Uricotelic animals excrete nitrogenous waste in the form of uric acid, which is the least soluble in water and requires very little water for excretion. Birds, reptiles, insects, and terrestrial arthropods are examples of uricotelic animals.
- Urea vs Uric Acid
- Aldaric Aldonic vs Uronic Acid
- Ammonium Sulfate vs Urea
- Amorphous Urate vs Phosphate
- Ammonium Nitrate vs Urea
- Ammonia vs Ammoniacal Nitrogen
- Urea vs Thiourea
- Ammonite vs Ammolite
- Ammonium Nitrate vs Ammonium Sulfate
- Ammonium Nitrate vs Ammonium Sulphate
- Ammonia vs Ammonium
- Amphiprotic vs Amphoteric
- Thymine vs Uracil
- Urea vs Urine
- Ampholyte vs Amphoteric
- Ammonia vs Ammonium Nitrate
- Amino Acid vs Nucleotide
- NH3N vs NH4N
- Ammonium Sulfate vs Sodium Sulphate