Summary
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1.
Carbon dioxide release, a major variable of gas exchange, was measured during rest, maximum activity and recovery in the tarantula,Eurypelma californicum, the ctenid spider,Cupiennius salei, and in the scorpions,Pandinus imperator andLeiurus quinquestriatus. InEurypelma andPandinus, water loss was measured simultaneously with CO2. InEurypelma, heart frequency, and in bothEurypelma andPandinus, the respiratory surfaces of the book lungs were also determined. In most experiments, gas exchange of the whole animal was measured, and the animals were not restrained.
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2.
At rest,\(\dot V_{CO_2 }\) was similar inEurypelma andPandinus. During activity,\(\dot V_{CO_2 }\) often came to a halt in the spiders but not in the scorpions. During recovery, the pattern of CO2 release was rather different in spiders and scorpions. In a series of experiments, CO2 release after different activity periods was measured. InEurypelma, maximum\(\dot V_{CO_2 }\) was much lower than inPandinus, and recovery time was much longer in the tarantula. The surplus release of CO2 was similar in both species, and it was linearly related to the duration of activity.
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3.
There were no significant differences in water loss during rest and recovery betweenEurypelma andPandinus, although these species live in quite different habitats (dry and humid environments). Special adaptations respecting a reduction of water loss seem to be absent inEurypelma.
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4.
The additional measurement of heart frequency inEurypelma revealed that slow fluctuations in CO2 release (1–3·min−1) at rest and in a later phase of recovery are probably caused by slow fluctuations in heart frequency. The time courses of\(\dot V_{CO_2 }\) and heart frequency during recovery differed, with heart frequency declining much faster than CO2 release.
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5.
The respiratory surface inPandinus is about 1.7 times larger than that inEurypelma, which is in agreement with a much higher maximal CO2 release inPandinus during recovery.
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6.
CO2 release pattern differences in the spiders and scorpions during recovery are probably caused by a different proportion of CO2 release for buffering metabolic acidosis. Because of the high postactive CO2 release due to the buffering ofd-lactate, respiration and acid-base control are strongly related in the arachnids investigated. It is proposed that the control of the spiracle entrance area from the ambient to the book lungs is an essential element in controlling the acid-base state of body fluids.
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Paul, R., Fincke, T. Book lung function in arachnids. J Comp Physiol B 159, 419–432 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00692414
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00692414