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Journal of Experimental Biology 138,487-497 (1988)
Published by Company of Biologists 1988

Exercising with and Without Lungs : II. Experimental Elimination of Pulmonary and Buccopharyngeal Gas Exchange in Individual Salamanders (Ambystoma Tigrinum)

MARTIN E. FEDER ¹

¹ Department of Anatomy and The Committee on Evolutionary Biology, The University of Chicago 1025 East 57th Street, Chicago, IL 60637, USA

To ascertain whether the presence of lungs per se, or some other physiological feature, might account for the differences in oxygen consumption and stamina previously observed in an interspecific comparison (Full et al. 1988), individual salamanders (Ambystoma tigrinum) were exercised on a treadmill before and after their nares and mouth had been sealed. After airway closure, animals behaved normally and suffered no mortality. Airway closure reduced the routine M_O2 (rate of oxygen consumption) by an average of 47% in six of seven individuals. Animals with open airways increased their M_O2 2-to 4-fold during locomotion at 11 cm s^-1, and did not fatigue in 22 min of exercise at this speed. Animals with closed airways managed only small increases above the routine M_O2 during exercise at 11 cm s^-1, and none could sustain activity for more than 10 min. Thus, exclusively skin-breathing Ambystoma cannot increase cutaneous gas exchange to compensate for the elimination of pulmonary and buccopharyngeal respiration; locomotor stamina suffers accordingly. Small salamanders can apparently increase cutaneous gas exchange during activity, although large salamanders cannot, because cutaneous diffusing capacity and the resting oxygen requirement approach one another with increasing body size; the skin of large salamanders apparently has a limited scope for aerobic activity.

Key words: cutaneous gas exchange, activity, amphibians

Accepted on March 21, 1988

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