Gas Exchange
All living organisms need to carry out cellular respiration (the breaking down of glucose to release energy), and cellular respiration creates a constant demand for oxygen and a need to omit carbon dioxide gas, which requires the system of gas exchange. Gas exchange is a physical process involving the movement of respiratory gases across a membrane. The respiratory gases (carbon dioxide and oxygen) are able to cross gas exchange membranes by diffusion because a concentration gradient exists across the gas exchange surface. In this report, the gas exchange system across three distinct groups of animals will be explained: insects, fish and mammals.
Regardless of the type of organism involved, the surface of the gas exchange system
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Their abdomen and legs are yellow coloured, and their back and wing cases are dark-coloured. As the diving beetle does not have gills, it uses the structural adaptation of carrying air under their wings to ensure survival in this habitat. They trap the air via the spiracles which open under their wings when they resurface. As the submerged insect respires, the oxygen is steadily used up and the insect is required to resurface to repeat the process of replenishing the oxygen. Because of carrying air under its wings, it has a visible bubble of air outside its body. The oxygen from the trapped air enters the spiracles, the trapped air also acts as a diffusion gill and oxygen from the water diffuses into the air bubble, replacing the used oxygen. The concentration gradient is maintained by the oxygen use (metabolism) in the tissues, which results in lowering the oxygen level in the bubble. Since the diving beetle is buoyant, when they sense that the oxygen supply from the air bubble is coming to an end, they are behaviourally adapted to stop swimming down, which will cause the insect to naturally float backwards to the surface. They also have the behavioural adaptation of positioning themselves underwater to ensure that it is their rear end which resurfaces first, instead of their head. As the opening of the wings …show more content…
Fish carry out gas exchange through the diffusion of dissolved respiratory gases across gill surfaces in direct contact with water. Gills are membrane structures consisting of suspended and flexible bony structures with numerous tissue fold and filaments, located in the cavities on either side of the mouth, as shown on the diagram below. Each gill filament is further divided into lamella with even smaller folds, resulting in greatly increasing the surface area. Gills also have thin membranes-making it easier for the respiratory gases to be exchanged between the blood and the water by diffusion as the water flows past the gills, and the gills contain a high number of blood capillaries. Bony fish, such as the snapper (lutjanus campechanus) have four pairs of gills, each supported by a bony arch. The gill cover is involved in ventilating the gills. Cartilaginous fish (e.g. sharks) have five/six pairs of gills. Water enters through the mouth and spiracle and exits via the gill slits (there is no gill cover). Fish facilitate gas exchange by ventilating the gill
After conducting the experiments, the hypothesis was found to be incorrect. The data’s common trend was; as the beetle’s mass increased, the amount of weight it could pull decreased. One of the beetles tested had a mass of 1.6 grams and was able to pull only a mass of 18.6 grams. The second beetle had a mass of 1.8 grams and was able to pull 37.3 grams.
For this experiment, it is important to be familiar with the diving reflex. The diving reflex is found in all mammals and is mainly focused with the preservation of oxygen. The diving reflex refers to an animal surviving underwater without oxygen. They survive longer underwater than on dry land. In order for animals to remain under water for a longer period of time, they use their stored oxygen, decrease oxygen consumption, use anaerobic metabolism, as well as aquatic respiration (Usenko 2017). As stated by Michael Panneton, the size of oxygen stores in animals will also limit aerobic dive capacity (Panneton 2013). The temperature of the water also plays a role. The colder the water is, the larger the diving reflex of oxygen.
Biology 2A03 Lab 4 Respiratory Gas Exchange in a Mouse Lab Manual. Winter Term 2014 (2014). Biology Department. McMaster University.
When you breathe in, air containing carbon dioxide (CO2) and oxygen (O2) it moves down your trachea; a tunnel containing cartilage and smooth tissue. Air then travels through two hollow tubes called bronchi; narrow branches lined with smooth muscle, mucosal and ringed cartilage to support the structure. The bronchi divide out into smaller tunnels called bronchioles; are small branches 0.5-1mm, lined with muscular walls to help dilate and constrict the airway. At the end of the bronchioles are little air sacs called alveoli; which assist in gas exchange of O2 and CO2. (Eldridge, 2016) Towards the end of alveoli are small blood vessel capillaries. O2 is moved through the blood stream through theses small blood vessels (capillaries) at the end of the alveoli and the CO2 is then exhaled. (RolandMedically,
I only chose respiratory as an answer. However, the correct answers are respiratory and cardiovascular because of the pulmonary circulatory system. Gas exchange occurs at pulmonary capillary beds.
The circulatory system and respiratory system share a highly important relationship that is crucial to maintaining the life of an organism. In order for bodily processes to be performed, energy to be created, and homeostasis to be maintained, the exchange of oxygen from the external environment to the intracellular environment is performed by the relationship of these two systems. Starting at the heart, deoxygenated/carbon-dioxide (CO2)-rich blood is moved in through the superior and inferior vena cava into the right atrium, then into the right ventricle when the heart is relaxed. As the heart contracts, the deoxygenated blood is pumped through the pulmonary arteries to capillaries in the lungs. As the organism breathes and intakes oxygenated air, oxygen is exchanged with CO2 in the blood at the capillaries. As the organism breathes out, it expels the CO2 into the external environment. For the blood in the capillaries, it is then moved into pulmonary veins and make
Their exoskeleton is not waterproof which means that they will also loose water through this. Fig 1. Dorsal View of Porcellio scaber [IMAGE] The ventral view of the anatomy of Woodlice (fig. 2) shows that they have simple pseudo-lungs as their respiratory surface and this is also towards the rear4. There is a pore opening that allows the exchange of
It is when much needed oxygen is obtained by the body in order for respiration to take place and the waste CO2 is taken out of the body. In us mammals, the exchange takes place in the lungs which contain a large number of alveoli. These are sponge-like structures in which the diffusion takes place. They are highly adapted to diffuse the gases as they give a large surface area for exchange of the gases.
The most unique feature of the platypus is the soft and pliable bill. The bill surface is perforated with openings that contain nerve endings, which allow the animal to locate food and aid movement under water. These pores contain two types of sensory receptors: mechanoreceptors, which respond to tactile pressure, and electroreceptors, which respond to electric fields. The eyes and ear openings are located behind the bill in a muscular groove, which contracts and closes as the platypus dives (Griffiths, 1998). The nostrils are positioned towards the tip of the bill and are slightly elevated upwards to allow breathing whilst the body is beneath the surface (Figure 1).
Opercular pumping is a mechanism utilized by certain fish for gas exchange. An opercular pump is used to pump water through the gills in an almost continuous unidirectional flow (SHSU). A dual pump is used in tandem in order to drive the unidirectional flow, both a buccal cavity and opercular cavity work simultaneously. The oral valve along the buccal cavity opens, allowing an influx of water. This influx of water causes an expansion of the opercular cavity, dropping the pressure (Hall). Water then enters into the opercular cavity and flows out due to opercular cavity compression. This compression pumps water out which leaves fresh air in the buccal cavity to be brought to the lungs for respiration. Lungfish utilize a different method of
First of all, an octopus is a cellapod. Which means it has a soft body, and no bones. An octopus also has eight arms, large useful eyes, and suction cups. ( Octopuses and Squid, page 6 by: Tori Miller.) All of these traits are mostly used for hunting. Eight arms come in handy when your prey is fast and can get away easily, large eyes are useful when you need to see in the dark or the depths of the ocean, and suction cups are used when they need to grab hold of something.( Octopuses Squid, page 14.) ( National Geographic, Octopus Facts.) Octopuses have blue blood caused by copper and bag like bodies. When born they're 1/4 of an inch and don't rely on...
The direction of the air goes through the trachea and goes into the posterior air sac, expiration will happen and push the air into the lungs. The air will then turn into a second inspiration where it will flow out of the lungs and into the anterior air sacs which leads to the second expiration which is when that air will flow back out through the trachea. The parabronchi is where the gas exchange happens. Two inhalations and two
One of the first reason why insects are so successful because they possess a tough exoskeleton that is covered with a waxy water repellant layer. The exoskeleton of insects also has helped them survive. An insect's external skeleton, or exoskeleton, is made of semi-rigid plates and tubes. In insects, these plates are made of a plastic like material called chitin along with a tough protein. A waterproof wax covers the plates and prevents the insect's internal tissues from drying out. Insect exoskeletons are highly effective as a body framework, but they have two drawbacks: they cannot grow once they have formed, and like a suit of armor, they become too heavy to move when they reach a certain size. Insects overcome the first problem by periodically molting their exoskeleton and growing a larger one in its place. Insects have not evolved ways to solve the problem of increasing weight, and this is one of the reasons why insects are relatively small. But compared to animals the Exoskeletons d...
These fish had some similarities to the Agnathans as they had a flexible tail that aided in propulsion and also had a head shield that was plated. Some of the fish with paired fins have small eyes that firmly set together above the head shield. They also have sensitive areas on every side of the head shields and these areas are covered with incredibly tiny bony plates. These organs acted as pressure sensors in water that was murky even though it his suggested that just like sharks, they sensed electrical