Biology / Unit 13 Bio 3145 short lesson, about 20 seconds
Integumentary Gas Exchange
Captions available
The idea
Integumentary gas exchange occurs directly across an animal's moist skin, working only for small or thin-bodied animals whose surface-to-volume ratio, per Bio 2727, keeps diffusion distances short.
In practice
An earthworm exchanges gases across its moist skin alone, without lungs or gills.
Where people slip
A dried-out skin surface halts gas exchange entirely, which is why this strategy is limited to consistently moist environments.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
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