Physical gill

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A physical gill is an envelope of air that surrounds the body of aquatic arthropods or parts of them and in this way enables them to breathe. This atmosphere is formed by structures that hold the air and protect it from being displaced by the water. These are mostly bristle fields or water-repellent parts of the outer skin. In contrast to the plastron (“incompressible gas gill”), this bubble, also known as the “compressible gas gill”, has to be regularly refreshed by atmospheric air on the water surface. The oxygen is less of a problem, as it diffuses from the surrounding water into the bladder when the partial pressure drops . As the proportion of oxygen in the bladder decreases, the proportion of nitrogen increases relative to this. If the partial pressure of nitrogen becomes higher than in the surrounding water, it diffuses outwards. This makes the air bubble smaller and is not suitable for unlimited dives like the plastron.

A physical gill forms in almost all insects living in water that breathe through a supply of air, as well as in water mites and water spiders .

literature

  • HE Hinton: Plastron respiration in bugs and beetles. In: J Insect Physiol. 22, 1976, pp. 1529-1550.
  • B. Messner, J. Adis: Functional morphological investigations on the plastron structures of arthropods. In: Verh Westd Entom Day 1993. Düsseldorf 1994.
  • PJ Mill: Respiration: aquatic insects. In: M. Rockstein (Ed.): The Physiology of Insecta. Vol VI. New York / London 1974, pp. 403-467.
  • H. Rahn, CV Paginelli: Gas exchange in gas gills of diving insects. In: Resp Physiol. 5, 1968, pp. 145-164.
  • W. Wichard, W. Arens, G. Eisenbeis: Atlas for the biology of water insects. Stuttgart 1994.