How do sharks protect their gills?

How do sharks protect their gills?

Unlike bony fish, sharks and rays do not have a protective covering over their gills (called an operculum). This covering aids ventilation of gills, which is why most bony fish do not have to constantly move to keep water flowing. Due to their structures, fish must, one way or another, flush water over their gills.

Do shark gills have protective covering?

Sharks do not have a protective bony covering over their gill slits, which leaves gills more vulnerable to injury. Many sharks, especially bottom-dwelling species, have paired openings called spiracles located between the eye and the gill slits.

Why do sharks have gills?

Sharks, like other fish, live in the water and use their gills to filter oxygen from the water. When water passes over the gills, a system of very fine blood vessels (capillaries) in the gills takes up (absorbs) oxygen from the water. Sharks have 5-7 pairs of gill slits located on the sides of their heads.

How do sharks breathe through their gills?

As sharks swim water passes through their mouth and is pushed through their gills. The gills filter the oxygen out of the water. The oxygen is then passed into the blood and travels around the shark’s body. This is how a shark breathes underwater.

What are shark gills called?

Gill slits are individual openings to gills, i.e., multiple gill arches, which lack a single outer cover. In contrast, bony fishes have a single outer bony gill covering called an operculum. Most sharks and rays have five pairs of gill slits, but a few species have 6 or 7 pairs.

What does the gill cover do?

gill cover (operculum) A hard but flexible cover which, in bony fish, forms the outer wall of the gill chamber. It protects the gills and also plays a major role in the pumping mechanism that regulates the continuous flow of water over them.

How do gills help breathing?

In order to remove oxygen from the water, they rely on special organs called “gills.” A fish breathes by taking water into its mouth and forcing it out through the gill passages. As water passes over the thin walls of the gills, dissolved oxygen moves into the blood and travels to the fish’s cells.