Breathing in long necked dinosaurs; did the sauropods have bird lungs?

Daniels, Christopher B.; Pratt, Jonathan P.

doi:10.1016/0300-9629(92)90625-z

Cited by 18 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Derived sauropod dinosaurs exhibit extensive development of lateral and internal excavations of their dorsal and cervical vertebrae, and comparative studies of the development of skeletal pneumaticity in living birds and sauropods strongly suggest that the latter had a system of air sacs similar to that of the former (Wedel 2003a,b). Additional support for the existence of a bird-like lung and air-sac configuration comes from a theoretical analysis of the physical limits and probable respiratory efficiency in sauropods, given their long necks (Daniels & Pratt 1992). The basic tissue density for axial body was set to that of water (1000 g l Ϫ1 ), while the limbs were set to 1050 g l Ϫ1 due to their higher proportion of bone.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Tipsy punters: sauropod dinosaur pneumaticity, buoyancy and aquatic habits

Henderson

2004

Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B

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Sauropod dinosaurs were the largest terrestrial animals to have ever existed, and are difficult to interpret as living animals owing to their lack of living descendants. With computer models that employ the basic physics of buoyancy and equilibrium, it is possible to investigate how the bodies of these animals would have reacted when immersed in water. Multi-tonne sauropods are found to be extremely buoyant and unstable in water when aspects of their probable respiratory anatomy are considered, which obviates the old problem of them being unable to breathe when fully immersed. Interpretations of 'manus-only' trackways made by floating sauropods will depend on the details of buoyancy as not all sauropods float in the same manner.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Tipsy punters: sauropod dinosaur pneumaticity, buoyancy and aquatic habits

Henderson

2004

Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B

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“…There is speculation based on computational and fossil evidence that this more efficient bird-style lung may have evolved in Sauropod Dinosaurs. The computational argument is offered by a mathematical model for ventilation with an 11-m-long trachea where the work of breathing becomes limiting in a bellows type of lung (66,279). The fossil evidence is the presence of pneumatic foramina in Sauropod skeleton that would be necessary for airflow to air sacs (368).…”

Section: Origin and Architecture Of The Mammalian Lungmentioning

confidence: 99%

Lung Structure and the Intrinsic Challenges of Gas Exchange

Hsia

Hyde

Weibel

2016

Comprehensive Physiology

164

137

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Structural and functional complexities of the mammalian lung evolved to meet a unique set of challenges, namely, the provision of efficient delivery of inspired air to all lung units within a confined thoracic space, to build a large gas exchange surface associated with minimal barrier thickness and a microvascular network to accommodate the entire right ventricular cardiac output while withstanding cyclic mechanical stresses that increase several folds from rest to exercise. Intricate regulatory mechanisms at every level ensure that the dynamic capacities of ventilation, perfusion, diffusion, and chemical binding to hemoglobin are commensurate with usual metabolic demands and periodic extreme needs for activity and survival. This article reviews the structural design of mammalian and human lung, its functional challenges, limitations, and potential for adaptation. We discuss (i) the evolutionary origin of alveolar lungs and its advantages and compromises, (ii) structural determinants of alveolar gas exchange, including architecture of conducting bronchovascular trees that converge in gas exchange units, (iii) the challenges of matching ventilation, perfusion, and diffusion and tissue-erythrocyte and thoracopulmonary interactions. The notion of erythrocytes as an integral component of the gas exchanger is emphasized. We further discuss the signals, sources, and limits of structural plasticity of the lung in alveolar hypoxia and following a loss of lung units, and the promise and caveats of interventions aimed at augmenting endogenous adaptive responses. Our objective is to understand how individual components are matched at multiple levels to optimize organ function in the face of physiological demands or pathological constraints.

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“…A theoretical study of breathing mechanics in sauropods suggests that they would have required a breathing system similar to that of birds with air sacs (Daniels and Pratt, 1992), and the system of abdominal and thoracic air sacs in birds occupies 15% of the volume of the trunk (Proctor and Lynch, 1993). Using birds as the starting point, sets of paired, triaxial ellipsoids rep- Table 1 for summaries of the limb loadings and foot areas.…”

Section: Assigning Densities To Sauropod Body Regionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Bramwell and Whitfield (1974) found that the density of a goose neck was 300 g/L, and this value was used for the densities of the heads and necks in both sauropod models. The presence of a wide trachea (Daniels and Pratt, 1992) would also contribute to a low neck density. The densities of the tails and limbs of both models were assigned the densities of water at 1000 g/L.…”

Section: Assigning Densities To Sauropod Body Regionsmentioning

confidence: 99%