Angelina Calder

Ms. Correa
Writing E03-2
25, October 2019
Chickens’ versus Squirrels’ Circulatory Systems

Every day, every second, a heart beats; its job is to transport oxygen to other parts of the

body. Each and every animal has a heart and circulatory system. What the heart does is very

crucial to surviving, it pumps blood and expels carbon dioxide. The circulatory system of a

chicken’s and a squirrel's circulatory system share physical features, same system performance

as well as their heart structure, but they also have a few differences.

Likewise, to the two animals sizes these animals share a lot of physical features such as

both animals are small and have similar hearts. Both creatures are small, meaning they can

transport oxygen quicker so the cells can produce energy faster. Squirrels are also small so they

can hide and climb trees easily, climbing and running can take lots of energy so they are small

like chickens. They also have similar looking hearts; their hearts are rather small. Their hearts

both have the right and left ventricle. These ventricles are located by the lower heart, and their

jobs are to pump oxygen received by the lungs and expel carbon dioxide. Although, they have

small hearts, the heart of a squirrel is abnormally small. A chicken is about forty cm tall while a

squirrel can grow from twenty to thirty cm.

The size might be similar, but their hearts perform differently. A chickens’ and squirrels’

circulatory system pump and transport blood around their bodies. The cells within the animals

use that oxygen to transform into energy, which the cells need in order to perform their

specialized functions. However, they do not have the same heart rate, a squirrel’s heart rate is
110-130 beat/min and can go up to 420 while a chicken’s heart rate is 40-45 beat/min and goes

up to 400. This show how different their heart’s pace work at. As well as a squirrel’s heart works

more than a chicken’s heart, this also might contribute to the size of their hearts.

Furthermore, the two creatures' hearts are different and similar. The two animals’

circulatory system are like each other, they both have four chamber hearts to pump their blood

unlike other animals with two chamber hearts. Their circulatory systems consist of most of the

same organs such as arteries, veins, a heart, and blood vessels. These help to make the system

work properly, without these items the system would not work. A chicken’s heart is both

complex and confusing, while on the contrary squirrels’ hearts are not that complex.

These fascinating creatures are similar, they are also different. They have many

similarities with their size, how their systems work, what their system does, and why they need

the system, but they are still somehow different in different ways. These differences are what

make every animal species unique and special. Each animal species are somehow different.
 Work Cited:

Weinheimer, Abby. “Circulatory System.” Prezi.com, 12 May 2016,

https://prezi.com/nkukkkrbjaau/circulatory-system/.

Management, Poultry Breeders. “Anatomy and Physiology of the Chicken.” Anatomy and

Physiology of the Chicken, 1 Jan. 1970, https://poultrybreeders.blogspot.com/2014/11/anatomy-

and-physiology-of-chicken.html