RIZAL TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY

Boni Avenue, Mandaluyong City College of

Arts and Sciences
DEPARTMENT OF BIOLOGY

CHAPTER 9
GAS EXCHANGE AND
ACID-BASE BALANCE

CHOSEN ANIMALS:
1. SLOTH
2. STINGRAY
3. SHOEBILL

SUBMITTED BY

RAMOS, VANNY L.

SECTION

CAS-02-601P

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 Table of Content

Cover Page ………………………………………………………………………………. 1

Table of Content …………………………………………………………………………. 2

Introduction (Sloth) ………………………………………………………………………. 3

Gas Exchange and Acid - Base (Sloth) ……………………………………………….. 4

Introduction (Stingray) …………………………………………………………………... 7

Gas Exchange and Acid - Base (Stingray) ……………………………………………. 8

Introduction (Shoebill) …………………………………………………………………… 9

Gas Exchange and Acid - Base (Shoebill) …………………………………………… 10

References ………………………………………………………………………………. 11

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 INTRODUCTION

CHOSEN TERRESTRIAL ANIMAL

A. COMMON NAME: SLOTH

B. SCIENTIFIC NAME: FOLIVORA

C. KINGDOM: ANIMALIA

D. PHYLUM: CHORDATA

E. CLASS: MAMMALIA

F. ORDER: PILOSA

G. FAMILY: MEGALOCNIDAE

H. HABITAT OR ECOLOGY: TROPICAL RAINFORESTS (MAINLY CENTRAL

AMERICA)

I. DOMESTIC OR WILD TYPE: WILD TYPE

J. LIFE SPAN: 20 – 30 YEARS

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SLOTH GAS EXCHANGE AND ACID-BASE BALANCE

̶ According to weebly (n.d.), Sloths must breathe slowly to maintain oxygen

levels. Sloths sleep for around 20 hours every day and consume the rest of
the time. They barely move roughly 10 percent of what mammals do on a
daily basis. The respiratory surface of sloths' lungs is smaller than typical, and
they breathe slowly. The Sloths' lungs are sponge-like and have a
honeycomb-like appearance. The muscular diaphragm controls inhalation,
and air enters the nasal and mouth passages before flowing via the larynx,
trachea, and bronchi. They breathe carbon dioxide out while taking oxygen
into their lungs. The sloths are kept warm by their metabolic activity (enzymes
that allow organisms to grow and reproduce, maintain their structures, and
adapt to their surroundings). They are warm-blooded creatures who
continually radiate warmth throughout their bodies. A resting rate of nine
breaths per minute (range 8-11) has been documented for both free roaming
and captive Sloths in Panama.

̶ Sloths are better at hanging around than previously imagined. Sloths breathe
easier by attaching their internal organs to their rib cage, lessening the weight
pulling on their lungs while they dangle upside down, according to a study
published in Biology Letters. According to BBC News, the researchers
estimate that while a sloth is upside down, this organ structure decreases
energy consumption by 7% to 13%. (Sumner, 2014). This is because sloths'
internal organs are jammed down, preventing them from bearing down on the
lungs, according to a Swansea-led study team. A team from the College of
Science collaborated with colleagues from the Sloth Sanctuary in Costa Rica
to conduct the study, which was published by the Royal Society (Jones, 2014).

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 ̶ The nose, nasal cavity, turbinates and meatuses, and paranasal sinuses make
up the upper respiratory system of a sloth. The outward component is the
nose. It features two rigid-edged nostrils linked to the top lip, which
communicate with the nasal cavity, and is flattened and bare. This cavity is
limited dorsally by the nasal bone, ventrally by the palatine process of the
incisive bone and the palatine bone and, finally, is limited laterally by maxillary
bones. The nasal septum, which extends from the ethmoid bone to the dorsal
section of the hard palate, is also totally split into the left and right halves.
Likewise, the nasal cavity is divided into the vestibule, which is rostral, and the
nasal cavities, as the caudal part (Vigil-Esquivel et al., 2021).

̶ There are three nasal turbinates in the nasal cavity lumen of a sloth: dorsal,
middle, and ventral. They're ossified and can be found dorsal to the hard
palate. The dorsal and ventral nasal turbinates are more rostral than the
middle one, although the middle turbinate is bigger. There are gaps in the
center of the nasal turbinates in each cavity that correspond to the meatus. As
a result, a dorsal nasal meatus, a ventral nasal meatus, a medial nasal
meatus, and a common nasal meatus are present. Furthermore, the paranasal
sinuses are air-filled pockets in the skull, and some of them might be identified.
The frontal sinuses, which are found in the frontal bone, are distinguished by
multiple septa that divide them into cavities. The sphenoid sinus was also
discovered, which is a single cavity that runs through the sphenoid bone.
Finally, while still on the skull, a hard palate with transverse ridges was
discovered, which was followed by a soft palate. The oropharynx and
nasopharynx of the pharynx are divided by this soft palate (Vigil-Esquivel et al.,
2021).

̶ The lower respiratory system's anatomy of a sloth. The larynx, trachea, and
lungs make up the lowest half of the respiratory system. There are four
cartilages that make up the larynx. The epiglottis is the most rostral of the
cartilages, consisting of a single rounded leaf-shaped cartilage. It is

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 characterized by the lack of cuneiform structures and is found near the
beginning of the larynx vestibule. The aryepiglottic folds, which run from the
lateral edges of the epiglottis to the arytenoid cartilage, are located between
the epiglottis and the arytenoid cartilage. The presence of corniculate
processes distinguishes the arytenoid cartilage, which is a pair structure. The
thyroid cartilage is the ventral and lateral region of the larynx, and it is quite
big. It is the lateral boundary of the piriform recess and is created by two lateral
plates joined in the ventral section. The cricoid cartilage is also found caudally
in the larynx, with the median crest and its ring form visible. (Vigil-Esquivel et
al., 2021).

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 INTRODUCTION

CHOSEN AQUATIC ANIMAL

A. COMMON NAME: STINGRAY

B. SCIENTIFIC NAME: MYLIOBATOIDEI

C. KINGDOM: ANIMALIA

D. PHYLUM: CHORDATA

E. CLASS: CHONDRICHTHYES

F. ORDER: MYLIOBATIFORMES

G. FAMILY: HEXATRYGONIDAE

H. HABITAT OR ECOLOGY: COASTAL TROPICAL AND SUB TROPICAL

MARINE WATERS (TEMPERATE SEAS)

I. DOMESTIC OR WILD TYPE: WILD TYPE

J. LIFE SPAN: 15 – 25 YEARS

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STINGRAY GAS EXCHANGE AND ACID-BASE BALANCE

̶ Stingrays breathe underwater, but unlike fish, they do not take in water
via their mouths and pump it through their gills. Instead, they have
spiracles (gas exchange apertures) behind their eyes, and their gills are
on the flat bottom of their bodies. Water enters the stingray's spiracles
and exits through the gills, allowing the stingray's mouth to open and
feed. The stingray can even breathe despite being coated in sand
because of this configuration (Gambrel, 2019).

̶ Spiracles are tiny apertures in fish and amphibians that allow them to
breathe. Spiracles are apertures behind the eyes of stingrays. Stingrays'
respiratory system is complicated by the fact that they take in water in two
different ways in order to utilize oxygen. Stingrays usually take in water
through their mouths and then send it through their gills for gas exchange.
This is effective, but stingrays cannot use their mouths when hunting since
they bury themselves in the ocean soil and wait for food to swim past, so
they switch to their spiracles (Long, 2009). They may suck water free of
sediment straight into their gills for gas exchange via the spiracles.
Because spiracles are unable to draw the same volume of water as the
mouth, they are less efficient than the mouth. When the stingray is calmly
waiting to ambush its victim, however, it is enough (Kardong, 2015).

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 INTRODUCTION

CHOSEN AVIAN ANIMAL

A. COMMON NAME: SHOEBILL

B. SCIENTIFIC NAME: BALAENICEPS REX

C. KINGDOM: ANIMALIA

D. PHYLUM: CHORDATA

E. CLASS: AVES

F. ORDER: PELECANIFORMES

G. FAMILY: BALAENICIPITIDAE

D. HABITAT OR ECOLOGY: FRESHWATER SWAMPS AND EXTENSIVE, DENSE

MARSHES (TROPICAL AFRICA)

I. DOMESTIC OR WILD TYPE: WILD TYPE

J. LIFE SPAN: 35 – 50 YEARS

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SHOEBILL GAS EXCHANGE AND ACID-BASE BALANCE

̶ The shoebills, brown pelican, boobies, and other pelicaniforms that dive into
the sea from a great height, have a system of air sacs under their skin. These
air sacs, which are related to the lungs, generate a spongy mattress that
shields the bird when it lands on the sea. The presence of this feature in
shoebill species that do not dive shows that the buoyancy it provides may be
beneficial in and of itself (Ashmole, 2020).

̶ Most shoebills have reduced external nostrils, which is likely related to diving
and swimming underwater. The closure is complete in boobies, adult
cormorants, and anhingas, but only partial in frigate birds and shoebills; tropic
birds' nostrils develop properly. The aerial shoebills nostrils are smaller than
those of the very aquatic shoebills, suggesting (together with the foot form)
that the shoebills are descended from a more aquatic lineage. Air enters the
mouth cavity straight from the outside in birds with nonfunctional nostrils, and
then travels to the lungs via the glottis—the muscle entrance to the windpipe
—at the base of the tongue. When the beak is closed, boobies and
cormorants use auxiliary external nostrils to get air into their mouth. On either
side of the mouth, a horny flap (jugal operculum) at the base of the upper
mandible overlaps the lower jaw, forming slit like apertures (Ashmole, 2020).

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REFERENCES:

Gas Exchange - Oxygen - Pygmy Three-Toed Sloth. weebly. (n.d.). Retrieved from:
http://three-toedslothresources.weebly.com/gas-exchange.html

Sumner, T. (2014). How sloths breathe upside down. Science. Retrieved from:
https://www.science.org/content/article/how-sloths-breathe-upside-
down#:~:text=Sloths%20are%20better%20adapted%20to,as%20they
%20dangle%20upside%20down.

Jones, N. (2014). How sloths can breathe easily upside down. Swansea University.
Retrieved from:
https://www.swansea.ac.uk/science/news/howslothscanbreatheeasilyupsidedow
n.php

Vigil-Esquivel, D. J., Coto-Sanabria, S., Vega-Alfaro, J. F., Cendra-Villalobos, E.,

Viloria-Hernández, R. M., Chaverri-Esquivel, L., & Passos-Pequeno, A. (2021).
Anatomy of the Respiratory System and Heart of the Sloth (Choloepus
hoffmanni) of Costa Rica. Ciencias Veterinarias, 39(1), 1-14. Retrieved from:
https://doi.org/10.15359/rcv.39-1.2

Gambrel, E. (2019). What are the adaptations of a Stingray? Sciencing. Retrieved

from: https://sciencing.com/adaptations-stingray-8273968.html

Long, N. (2009). Southern Stingray (Dasyatis americana). bioweb. Retrieved from:

http://bioweb.uwlax.edu/bio203/s2009/long_nico/Adaptation.htm

Kardong, K. V. (2015). Vertebrates: Comparative anatomy, function, evolution.

McGraw-Hill Education.

Ashmole, N. Philip (2020). pelecaniform. Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved from:

https://www.britannica.com/animal/pelecaniform

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