The Manatee
Grace Krieger
Integumentary System
Skeletal/Muscular System
The Nervous System
The Respiratory System
The manatee's nostrils are where they take in breath, when they go back underwater their nostrils automatically close off in order to keep the water out. They breathe on average every 2-5 minutes, yet they can stay submerged for 20 minutes. Manatees lungs are very special, their lungs are flattened and prolonged. They stretch horizontally along the manatees back, almost to the anus. This is unlike any other mammal, just like how the branching arrangement of the bronchi and blood vessels in the lungs is more simple in manatees that it is in other mammals. Another thing about their lungs is that each has its own independent cavity. They have two hemi-diaphragms; this differs from other mammals who have one diaphragm. The manatee's lungs help control their buoyancy. With every breath the manatee takes, they change/refresh 90% of the air in their lungs, whereas humans only change 10% of the air in their lungs. This feature allows them to make more use of their trips to the surface. Lastly, alike other aquatic mammals, when diving, manatees can slow their heart rates to as little as 20% of their ordinary rate. This is for the conservation of oxygen.
The Circulatory System
Endocrine & Digestive System
Manatees are aquatic mammals, yet they don't include most water when they eat, resulting in their stomach contents being pretty dry. Manatees have large salivary glands to aid in digestion, like plant eaters.Manatees, like horses, are hind-gut digesters. This results in most of the digestive process occurring further along the intestinal tract. Their metabolic rate is 15-20% of what one would expect to see for a mammal of the manatees proportions. One can conclude from this that the manatee has a relatively poor diet. The manatee takes seven days to digest food.
Reproductive System
Male manatees reach sexual maturity around 9-10 years of age, whereas females can reach sexual maturity. It is estimated that one calf is bonr every 2-5 years, and that twins are rare but do happen. The gestation period for a female is is about 12-13 months. The female manatees genital opening can be located just in front of the anus, and the male manatees genital opening lies just behind the navel, about halfway down the underside of its body.
Works Cited
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"About the Circulatory System of a Manatee." EHow. Demand Media, 28 Oct. 2008. Web. 29 Nov. 2014.