Mammal Gas Exchange

* How would you describe the structure and function of this animal’s respiratory system? Include any unique characteristics. The primary function of the respiratory system is to supply the blood with oxygen in order for the blood to deliver oxygen to all parts of the body. The respiratory system does this through breathing.

The organisms have multiple opening in the exoskeleton called spiracles allowing for a flow of air into the organism. These spiracles are located on each of the different segments of the animal’s thorax and abdomen. The spiracles then lead to the animal’s tracheal tubes. The tracheal tubes then branch off and allow air to come in contact with the cell and body fluids inside of the animal (Hadow et al. 2015). The spiracles on open and close together during ventilations, while the air goes in through the thoracic spiracles and expelled from the abdominal spiracles. (Heinrich et al.

I’m finally in the lung. I can finally see what it looks like. I see a structure that looks like a three without leaves. I am passing the right primary bronchi. It is a tube like structure that allow for the passage of air between the trachea and lung (Health Type, 2012). As I move along the right primary bronchi branches off into the right secondary bronchi. Each one of the bronchi serves as an airway to a specific lobe of the lung (Wikipedia, 2011). The bronchi have cartilage plates, smooth muscles, and mucus-secreting gland cells in its wall (Wikipedia, 2011). They contain cilia, which removes dust and debris. Wow! The right secondary bronchi are branching off into very small passageways called bronchioles. The bronchioles are responsible for controlling air distribution and airflow resistance in the lungs (Wise Geek, 2012). They also contain cilia that help move air through the system. The bronchioles are now terminating at the alveolar ducts. They are the tiny end ducts that fill the lungs. At the end of

➢ Inhaled air enters the nasal cavity, where it is cleaned, warmed and humidified on its way through the pharynx.

In general, mammals have a closed circulatory system allowing them to ventilate easily. Air is inhaled by mammals through their mouths when their diaphragm contracts before travelling down the trachea. Air enters the lungs through the trachea, which splits into two bronchi and then smaller bronchioles. All of these tubes are held open by rings of cartilage. It is on the bronchioles where alveoli are. Alveoli are the gas exchange surface in mammals. Alveoli provide a moist gas exchange surface in which oxygen diffuses from the water into the alveoli. The oxygen diffuses from the alveoli to the blood capillaries surrounding them before the blood gets transported to the many cells needed because of respiration. The blood supply is extensive, which means that oxygen is carried away to the cells as soon as it has diffused into the blood.

The bronchus is divided into many smaller tubes that is called Bronchi tubes. The Bronchi tubes gets smaller and multiplied as it goes further in and they are called bronchioles. It leads the air to the alveoli which are small sacs of air, from the alveoli the oxygen is handed over into the capillaries into the red blood cells, then it’s taken into the cells in the body to be used. That’s when the lungs expand while breathing oxygen, as the lung expands the diaphragm contracts.

Large animals depend on diffusion to get their oxygen but they require a specialized ventilation system, which serves the function to maintain a concentration gradient, which is necessary for diffusion and to increase the surface area, which consequently speeds up gas

Generally, fish are ectothermic and have a streamlined body to swim rapidly. Fish usually consist of scales that surround their body, one or two dorsal fins, a tail fin and an anal fin, two sets of paired fins and jaws. Many different kinds of fish live in a freshwater, aquatic habitat such as lakes, rivers and the ocean. The water that fish live in has a low concentration of oxygen and is more viscous than air. The amount of dissolved oxygen in a volume of water is much less than in the same volume of air. Air is 21% oxygen but in water, dissolved oxygen is about 1% by volume. Considering this, fish must have an efficient gas exchange membrane to live. (discuss this

The respiratory system of a koala is very similar to humans. Their gas exchange is done by breathing into the lungs and breathing out the exchange of carbon dioxide. The oxygen that was breathed in, then goes into the bloodstream in the heart and is transferred through the body and exchanged. Their system includes a nose, nostrils, a respiratory tract, and lungs. The only difference between koalas and other mammals are that they lack "swell bodies" which are glands that regulate air flow between the left and right nasal cavities but it does not effect them as much.

Air is inhaled through the larynx and passes down the trachea, which divides into two main bronchiright

Each species of animal contains a unique lung structure which provides them with adequate oxygen and carbon dioxide fluctuation. The species live in different habitats and encounter differing struggles such as flying or being very small which require them to have unique lung adaptations to be efficient. The bird is the most efficient breather, possessing the ability to breath in and out and maximize oxygen absorption. While the spider has very different lungs that are specialized to their lifestyle. In order to compare these lungs the bird and the bat are similar in the fact that they have to adapt to changes in pressure as they are flying as well as being able to maintain the amount of oxygen that they need to survive. The spider and the bat

The respiratory system major role is to supply the body with oxygen and dispose of carbon dioxide. The body cells require a continuous supply of oxygen and as the cells use oxygen, they produce carbon dioxide which is a waste that the body needs to get rid of. There are four distant process that must occur during respiration which are Pulmonary ventilation, External respiration, Transport of respiratory gases and Internal respiration. The pulmonary ventilation is commonly called breathing and it’s the tide like movement of air into and out of the lungs. The external respiration is the gas exchange between the blood and chambers of the lungs. The Transport of respiratory gases is the transport of respiratory gases between the lungs and tissue

This means that they are not limited to living only in an aquatic habitat or a terrestrial habitat unlike fish. Fish can only live in an aquatic habitat and have no special adaptations to live in a terrestrial habitat. A fish's gas exchange system requires water to support the fish's filaments and to hold the lamellae apart so that surface area can be kept large. If a fish were to live in a terrestrial habitat they would be permanently exposed to air. This air would then make the filaments and the lamellae stick together which would then greatly decrease the surface area to volume ratio. As a result, the efficiency of gases diffusing would reduce. Fish's gills would desiccate without the water to keep them moist so the respiratory gases would not be able to dissolve so it can diffuse into the blood. However, due to the process of counter-current flow, fish can take in more of the oxygen that is in water. This leads to a greatly efficient gas exchange. Mammals can avoid desiccation of their gas exchange system as the air they breathe in is warmed and moistened by the nasal passages as it enters the nostrils and the mouth. This allows the mammals to live in terrestrial or aquatic

It is also often referred to as the "windpipe." The trachea then branches off like a tree. The first splits of this "tree" are the bronchi, and the smallest branches are called the bronchioles. Thus after air travels through the trachea, it then reaches the bronchi, and spreads throughout the bronchioles.

For many terrestrial mammals, breathing is a subconscious function but may also be controlled voluntarily which is especially essential for aquatic mammals that need to do so. However, breathing rates can also be regulated in response to the concentration levels of carbon dioxide present in the blood. When the alveolar ventilation of carbon dioxide surpasses the carbon dioxide produced by the body the organism will begin to hyperventilate and gaseous exchange rate increases as more oxygen and carbon dioxide is drawn in and out at a faster rate.