How does the loop of henle differ in animals living in dry conditions to animals in wet conditions?

Is it simply longer to reabsorb more of the water filtered or..?

How does the loop of henle differ in animals living in dry conditions to animals in wet conditions?
The Loop of Henle is part of the nephron as you know. However, there are two types of nephrons, and all animals have a combination of both. One is the juxtamedullary nephron, where the glomerulus is around the corticomedullary junction and the loop of Henle descends deep into the medulla of the kidney. This allows more water to be reabsorbed from the urine, which is advantageous in dry conditions. One would expect a lot more of these types of nephrons in animals in dry conditions where water is scarce.





The other type of nephron is the cortical nephrons. These sit high up in the cortical region, and the result is that the loop of Henle barely enters the medulla where water is reabsorbed. Hence, only a little of water is reabsorbed resulting in copious amounts of dilute urine. This would be more prominent in animals used to living in wet conditions where there is more water to be found.





So basically the different types of nephrons affect how MUCH water is reabsorbed without affecting the RATE at which water is reabsorbed.





Hope that answers your question.
Reply:In animals from dry conditions the loop of henle elongates to allow the animal more time to reabsorb fluid passing through it.
Reply:It's longer :)
Reply:Animals that live in drier climates tend to have longer loops of Henle. This produces a stronger countercurrrent gradient necessary to conserve water while producing a more concentrated urine. For example, kangaroo rats that live in the desert have much longer loops of Henle, but generate countercurrent gradients in the thousands compared to humans.



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