10-08-2004, 07:45 PM
Is it true turtles breathe through their butts?
16-Nov-2001
Dear Cecil:
I have read that turtles can breathe through their bums. Is this true, and if so, why did they evolve such a talent and what are the mechanics of this trick? --Steve Carr
Cecil replies:
How turtles breathe, how they pull in their heads--these are worthy topics. The rigid rib cage also places restrictions on breathing. Turtles have two special sets of respiratory muscles. One set pulls the body contents outward, toward the openings at the front and rear of the shell. This expands the body cavity and draws air into the lungs, which are located in the top part of the shell. The other pushes the viscera up against the lungs to expel the air. This system has the drawback that both inhalation and exhalation require energy--in most vertebrates, elastic energy can be recovered from the rib cage so that exhalation requires little exertion.
Turtles have extraordinary anaerobic capacity--they have survived up to 33 hours in a pure nitrogen atmosphere. (Most reptiles have a high anaerobic capacity compared to mammals, but even they can't survive much more than 30 minutes without oxygen.) Although basically air-breathing, many aquatic species have developed ways to pick up oxygen even when submerged. Of these the most remarkable, which some turtles share with dragonfly nymphs, sea cucumbers, and certain televangelists, is the ability to breathe through one's butt. You've heard the expression âBlow it out your after regions?â It's no mere figure of speech.
16-Nov-2001
Dear Cecil:
I have read that turtles can breathe through their bums. Is this true, and if so, why did they evolve such a talent and what are the mechanics of this trick? --Steve Carr
Cecil replies:
How turtles breathe, how they pull in their heads--these are worthy topics. The rigid rib cage also places restrictions on breathing. Turtles have two special sets of respiratory muscles. One set pulls the body contents outward, toward the openings at the front and rear of the shell. This expands the body cavity and draws air into the lungs, which are located in the top part of the shell. The other pushes the viscera up against the lungs to expel the air. This system has the drawback that both inhalation and exhalation require energy--in most vertebrates, elastic energy can be recovered from the rib cage so that exhalation requires little exertion.
Turtles have extraordinary anaerobic capacity--they have survived up to 33 hours in a pure nitrogen atmosphere. (Most reptiles have a high anaerobic capacity compared to mammals, but even they can't survive much more than 30 minutes without oxygen.) Although basically air-breathing, many aquatic species have developed ways to pick up oxygen even when submerged. Of these the most remarkable, which some turtles share with dragonfly nymphs, sea cucumbers, and certain televangelists, is the ability to breathe through one's butt. You've heard the expression âBlow it out your after regions?â It's no mere figure of speech.
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