Respiratory Physiology of Vertebrates: Life With and Without Oxygen

Respiratory Physiology of Vertebrates: Life With and Without Oxygen

A comprehensive exploration of how vertebrates acquire, transport, and utilize oxygen, as well as how some species survive periods of severe or complete oxygen deprivation. The book combines fundamental respiratory physiology with comparative examples of extreme adaptations, including diving, high-altitude survival, air breathing in fish, and life without oxygen.

Key Features

• Covers the fundamentals of vertebrate respiratory physiology
• Explains oxygen sensing, uptake, transport, and utilization
• Compares respiratory adaptations across vertebrate groups
• Examines breathing in aquatic and terrestrial environments
• Explores air breathing adaptations in fish
• Discusses diving physiology in mammals and birds
• Examines adaptations to high-altitude environments
• Explores vertebrates capable of surviving prolonged oxygen deprivation
• Connects respiratory mechanisms with evolutionary adaptation
• Highlights extreme physiological adaptations to oxygen limitation
• Integrates comparative physiology with ecological and evolutionary perspectives
• Useful for students, researchers, zoologists, physiologists, and comparative biologists