Comparative analysis of hemoglobin content in four species of anurans from the Ural uplands

Abstract

A change in the hemoglobin oxygenbinding capacities towards its maximal oxygen saturation (at its low content) was the strategy of the evolution of the blood respiratory function in Amphibia (1). There� fore, Amphibia require a small oxygen partial pressure in the environment for the complete hemoglobin sat� uration with oxygen (2). Since the respiratory function is performed in adult Amphibia by a whole set of organs, including the skin, lungs, and mucous mem� brane of the oropharyngeal cavity (as opposed to other terrestrial vertebrates), 50-90% of oxygen comes in through them. The relative roles of different organs in respiration depend on the ecological specifics of the species. In the blood of Amphibia, hemoglobin plays the role of the original depositary, where oxygen is reserved in case its inflow through other channels decreases (3). For this reason, data on hemoglobin content in the blood of Amphibia and its age, seasonal, and zonal peculiarities are an important characteristic of adaptive capacities of the species studied and well reflect the functional potential of each of them. In 2010-2011, studies on hemoglobinometry of the blood of Amphibia were performed. The depen� dence of the hemoglobin content and species compo� sition of Amphibia from different natural habitats was for the first time considered. Four species of anurans (Amphibia, Anura) that belong to the family Ranidae from the Ural upland area, including Pelophylax ridi�