Dolphin lung collapse and intramuscular circulation during free diving: evidence from nitrogen washout.
Intramuscular nitrogen tensions in Tursiops truncatus after a schedule of repetitive ocean dives suggest a lung collapse depth of about 70 meters and suggest that intramuscular circulation is maintained during unrestrained diving in the open ocean. Therefore, the bottle-nosed dolphin is not protected by lung collapse from the decompression hazards of dives to depths shallower than 70 meters.
D000273:Adipose Tissue / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D004242:Diving; D004289:Dolphins / Q000502:physiology*; D008168:Lung / Q000502:physiology*; D009132:Muscles / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000378:metabolism; D009584:Nitrogen / Q000378:metabolism*; D012039:Regional Blood Flow; D012119:Respiration
D009584:Nitrogen