Vertebrate Breathing

Vertebrate Breathing

To the tune of  “All Too Well” by Taylor Swift
Listen to the “10 minute version” here

[Verse 1]
When hagfish are breathing
Water enters the buccal cavity
The velum contracts forcing water
Over the gills then out once more

[Verse 2]
In lamprey water enters the mouth
Muscles in each gill slit force it out
However, when the lamprey are feeding
They switch over to tidal breathing

[Pre-Chorus]
Cartilaginous fishes
Will use a buccal pump 
To ventilate their gills
Oh, oh, oh

[Chorus]
Flow of respiratory media
Is pulsatile because they only have one pump
We know now, this how 
Different vertebrate groups will breathe

[Verse 3]
Actinopterygians solve this problem
By using a two pump system
The buccal cavity and operculum 
They rely on both force and suction

[Pre-Chorus]
Lungfish and amphibians
Use a buccal pump
To swallow air into their lung
Oh, oh, oh

[Chorus]
They control air flow by closing
Their glottis valve which separates this opening
We know now, this how 
Different vertebrate groups will breathe

[Bridge]
Suction ventilation
Is used by amniotes
Who separate their breathing
And feeding muscles 
We know now, this how 
Different vertebrate groups will breathe
The mammalian lung is tubes that branch
Ending in alveoli that are blind ended
Air can only exit the lung the same way (way, way)
It came

[Verse 4]
Bird lungs are the most efficient
While breathing air capillaries do not expand
This allows their lungs and their blood capillaries
To be optimal morphologically
Air sacs that are attached to lung
Are what will expand during ventilation
This is how
Different vertebrate groups will breathe

[Chorus]
Bird lung organization
Allows for unidirectional ventilation
We know now, this how 
Different vertebrate groups will breathe

[Outro]
We know now, this how 
Different vertebrate groups
We know now, this how 
Different vertebrate groups
We know now, this how 
Different vertebrate groups will breathe