Fish have a single systemic circuit for blood, where the heart pumps

the blood to the gills to be re-oxygenated (gill circulation), after which

the blood flows to the rest of the body and back to the heart.

Other animals, such as amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals,

have a pulmonary circuit, where blood is pumped from the heart to
the lungs and back, and a second, systemic circuit where blood is
pumped to the body and back.

Amphibians are unique in that they have a third circuit that brings
deoxygenated blood to the skin in order for gas exchange to occur;
this is called pulmocutaneous circulation.

The number of heart chambers, atria and ventricles, mitigates the

amount of mixing of oxygenated and deoxygenated blood in the heart
as more chambers usually mean more separation between the
systemic and pulmonary circuits.

Warm-blooded animals require the more-efficient system of four

chambers that has the oxygenated blood completely separated from
the deoxygenated blood.

Before we get going, here are some exciting heart facts to start your day with: In case your
momma never told you, hearts have 2 types of chambers: atria and ventricles. Atria are where
blood enters the heart and ventricles pump the blood out of the heart. Hearts take in oxygen poor
blood, pump it through the pulmonary circuit (lungs/gills) where it gets oxygenated, and then they
pump it out to the rest of the body. There are many many small veins (take blood to the heart)
and arteries (carry it away) which connect the heart to the pulmonary circuit and keep it all
running right. Blood pressure has to be carefully balanced in all tubes so that flow pressure is
maintained and blood keeps moving, but not so fast as to explode certain areas or capillaries. One
might say this careful and complex hydrostatic wiring might be easily selectable in an evolutionary
scenario, but there's no getting around the fact that there's a very complicated and highly
balanced network of biological fluid mechanics going on inside a heart than most artificial heart
engineers probably care to think about.

Given all this, there are 3 basic ways to make a heart found in animals: a 2 chambered heart, a 3
chambered heart, and a 4 chambered heart. Fish have 2 chambers, one atrium and one ventricle.
Amphibians and reptiles have 3 chambers: 2 atria and a ventricle. Crocodiles are the one reptilian
exception, as they have 4 chambers (2 atria, 2 ventricles). Birds and mammals have 4 chambers
(2 atria and 2 ventricles).

Differences between the hearts:

The fish heart (figure 1a) is much different than the amphibian/reptile/bird/mammal heart (figures
1b and c). Hearts are very complex--they're not just a bunch of random arteries and veins
connecting tissue. Fish hearts simply draw in deoxygenated blood in a single atrium, and pump it
out through a ventricle. This system is termed "single circulation", as blood enters the heart, gets
pumped through the gills and out to the body, Blood pressure is low for oxygenated blood leaving
the gills.

3 and 4 chambered hearts have a pulmonary circuit (pathways taking blood from heart to lung and
back to heart) that is very complex and must be set up such that blood can travel from the heart
to become oxygenated in the lungs and then be properly pumped back the heart and out to the
body. The 3 (and 4) chambered heart has "double circulation" (figure 1b and c) and is quite
different from "single circulation" (figure 1a) of fishes.

"Double circulation" has an interior circuit within the heart--blood enters the heart, leaves the
heart and gets oxygenated, enters the heart again, and then gets pumped out to the body.
Because "Double circulation" allows oxygenated blood to be pumped back into the heart before
going out to the body, it pumps blood with much more pressure and much more vigorously than
"single circulation".

BIRDS
The avian heart is more like the mammalian heart with four chambers. Warm blooded animals
such as birds and mammals have a high metabolic rate and an efficient circulation of blood is a
necessity. Blood of mammals and birds flows through the heart where deoxygenated blood going
to the lungs is kept separate from blood destined for the body. This allows for no mixing of
oxygenated and deoxygenated blood thus maximising the content of oxygen in the blood arriving
at the tissues and organs.

AMPHIBIANS
The heart of an amphibian, such as a frog, has three chambers, one
ventricle and two atria. Blood from the ventricle travels to the lungs and
skin where it is oxygenated and also to the body. In the ventricle
deoxygenated and oxygenated blood are mixed before being pumped
out of the heart. This is a very inefficient method when compared to the
mammalian heart.

Amphibians, however, have lower metabolisms hence they require

less oxygen. Requiring less oxygen puts less demands on the heart to
deliver blood of high oxygen concentration. So a heart with three
chambers is ideal for the needs of amphibians who could also absorb
oxygen through their skin when moist. Mammals and birds, however,
have a higher metabolic rate so must have a way of delivering more
oxygen per litre of blood to the body than amphibians.

ARTROPODS

Insects are arthropods and like all arthropods have

an open circulatory system. That is, blood is not
housed in blood vessels as it travels around the
body. In an open system, a blood like fluid, called
the hemolymph, flows freely within body cavities
where it makes direct contact with all internal
tissues and organs.

The heart of an insect is a blood vessel called the

dorsal vessel. This dorsal vessel is divided into
chambers that are separated by valves to ensure
hemolymph flows in one direction. Muscles attached
to the walls of each chamber undergo peristaltic
contractions and force blood to flow forwards from
chamber to chamber.

MAMALS

Same as birds

CIRCULATORY SYSTEMS
In an open circulatory system, blood mixes with internal organs directly.
Organisms with this type of system do not have a true heart or capillaries.
Instead of a true heart, there are blood vesselsthat act as pumps to force the
blood along.

Instead of capillaries, blood vessels join directly with open sinuses.

In a closed circulatory system, blood is pumped through a closed system of

arteries, veins, and capillaries.

The circulatory system, also called the cardiovascular system or the vascular system,
is an organ system that permits blood to circulate and transport nutrients (such as amino
acids and electrolytes), oxygen, carbon dioxide, hormones, and blood cells to and from
the cells in the body to provide nourishment and help in fighting diseases, stabilize
temperature and pH, and maintain homeostasis. The study of the blood flow is
calledhemodynamics. The study of the properties of the blood flow is called hemorheology.
The circulatory system is often seen to comprise two separate systems: the cardiovascular
system, which distributes blood, and the lymphatic system, which circulates lymph.[1] The
passage of lymph for example takes much longer than that of blood. [2] Blood is a fluid
consisting of plasma, red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets that is circulated by
the heart through the vertebrate vascular system, carrying oxygen and nutrients to and
waste materials away from all body tissues. Lymph is essentially recycled excess blood
plasma after it has been filtered from the interstitial fluid (between cells) and returned to the
lymphatic system. The cardiovascular (from Latin words meaning "heart" and "vessel")
system comprises the blood, heart, and blood vessels.[3] The lymph, lymph nodes,
and lymph vessels form the lymphatic system, which returns filtered blood plasma from the
interstitial fluid (between cells) as lymph.

While humans, as well as other vertebrates, have a closed cardiovascular system (meaning
that the blood never leaves the network of arteries, veins and capillaries),
some invertebrate groups have an open cardiovascular system. The lymphatic system, on
the other hand, is an open system providing an accessory route for excess interstitial fluid
to be returned to the blood.[4] The more primitive, diploblastic animal phyla lack circulatory
systems.

HEARTS
The heart is a muscular organ in humans and other animals, which pumps blood through
the blood vessels of the circulatory system.[1] Blood provides the body
with oxygen and nutrients, as well as assists in the removal of metabolic wastes.[2] The
heart is located in the middle compartment of the chest.[3]

In humans, other mammals, and birds, the heart is divided into four chambers: upper left
and right atria; and lower left and right ventricles.[4][5] Commonly the right atrium and
ventricle are referred together as the right heart and their left counterparts as the left heart.
[6]
Fish in contrast have two chambers, an atrium and a ventricle, while reptiles have three
chambers.[5] In a healthy heart blood flows one way through the heart due toheart valves,
which prevent backflow.[3] The heart is enclosed in a protective sac, the pericardium, which
also contains a small amount of fluid. The wall of the heart is made up of three
layers: epicardium, myocardium, and endocardium.[7]

The heart pumps blood with a rhythm determined by a group of pacemaking cells in
the sinoatrial node. These generate a current that causes contraction of the heart, traveling
through the atrioventricular node and along the conduction system of the heart. The heart
receives blood low in oxygen from the systemic circulation, which enters the right atrium
from the superior and inferior venae cavae and passes to the right ventricle. From here it is
pumped into the pulmonary circulation, through the lungs where it receives oxygen and
gives off carbon dioxide. Oxygenated blood then returns to the left atrium, passes through
the left ventricle and is pumped out through the aorta to the systemic circulationwhere the
oxygen is used and metabolized to carbon dioxide.[8] The heart beats at a resting rate close
to 72 beats per minute.[9] Exercise temporarily increases the rate, but lowers resting heart
rate in the long term, and is good for heart health.[10]
Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the most common cause of death globally as of 2008,
accounting for 30% of deaths.[11][12] Of these more than three quarters are a result
of coronary artery disease and stroke.[11] Risk factors include: smoking, being overweight,
little exercise, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and poorly controlled diabetes, among
others.[13] Cardiovascular diseases frequently have no symptoms or may causechest
pain or shortness of breath. Diagnosis of heart disease is often done by the taking of
a medical history, listening to the heart-sounds with a stethoscope, ECG, and ultrasound.
[3]
Specialists who focus on diseases of the heart are called cardiologists, although many
specialties of medicine may be involved in treatment. [12]

nstead of having an open system, many large animals use a closed

circulatory system. This means that the blood is enclosed in a highway of
vessels rather than flowing freely inside the body cavity.

By retaining the blood inside tiny blood vessels, blood can be pumped to the far
reaches of larger animals. It also gives the animal the ability to pump more
blood to some areas and not others. While great for keeping blood pumping to
your extremities, a closed system means that blood isnt in direct contact with
the plasma membrane of the cells. Diffusion of nutrients has to take place in two
steps, first out of the blood vessel and then into the cell.

The heart is the key to any circulatory system, because it provides the muscle
power to move the blood throughout the entire body, even to itself. The arteries
that supply blood to the heart are called coronary arteries, and they are the
bright red blood vessels shown crisscrossing the top of the heart in the picture.

Most of the cells in the human body are not in direct contact with the
external environment, so rely on the circulatory system to act as a
transport service for them. Two fluids move through the circulatory
system: blood and lymph. The blood, heart, and blood vessels form
the Cardiovascular System. The lymph, lymph nodes and lymph
vessels form the Lymphatic System. The Cardiovascular System and
the Lymphatic System collectively make up the Circulatory System. 1.
Vertebrates have a closed circulatory system, meaning the blood is
repeatedly cycled throughout the body inside a system of pipes. 2. It
was in 1628, when the English Dr. William Harvey showed that blood
circulated throughout the body in oneway vessels. According to him,
blood was pumped out of the heart and into the tissues through one
type of vessel and back to the heart through another type of vessel.
The blood, in other words, moved in a closed cycle through the body.
3. Blood is the bodys internal transportation system. Pumped by the
heart, blood travels through a network of blood vessels, carrying
nutrients (O2, glucose) and hormones to the cells and removing waste
products (CO2. urea) from the 1012 (= 100 trillion) cells of our
bodies.. THE HEART 1. The central organ of the cardiovascular system
is the heart. This is a hollow, muscular organ that contracts at regular
intervals, forcing blood through the circulatory system. 2. The heart is
cone-shaped, about the size of a fist, and is located in the centre of
the thorax, between the lungs, directly behind the sternum
(breastbone). The heart is tilted so that the base is tilted to the left. 3.
The walls of the heart are made up of three layers of tissue: a) The
outer and inner layers are epithelial tissue. b) The middle layer,
comprising the cardiac muscle of the heart itself, is called the
myocardium. 4. For obvious reasons, the cardiac muscle is not under
the conscious control of the nervous system, and can generate its
own electrical rhythm (myogenic). For the same reasons, cardiac
muscle cannot respire anaerobically and so the muscle cannot get
tired (or develop cramp!) 5. Cardiac muscle has a rich supply of blood,
which ensures that it gets plenty of oxygen. This is brought to the
heart through the coronary artery. Since the heart relies on aerobic
respiration to supply its energy needs, cardiac muscle cells are richly
supplied with mitochondria. 6. Our hearts beat about once every
second of every day of our lives, or over 2.5 million times in an
average life span. The only time the heart gets a rest is between
beats. HOW THE HEART WORKS 1. The heart can be thought of as two
pumps sitting side by side each of which has an upper atrium and a
lower ventricle a total of 4 chambers. It functions as two pumps
inside one. 2. The right side of the heart pumps deoxygenated blood
(actually, blood low in oxygen) from the body into the lungs, where
gas exchange takes place. In that process, carbon dioxide is lost to
the air and oxygen is absorbed. This oxygen is almost all carried by
the Red Blood Cells (RBCs). 3. The left side of the heart pumps
oxygenated blood from the lungs to the rest of the body. 4. The heart
is enclosed in a protective membrane-like sac called the pericardium,
which surrounds the heart and secretes a fluid that reduces friction as
the heart beats. 5. The atria (upper chambers) of the heart receive
blood coming into the heart. Then have thin walls, so allowing them to
be filled easily. They pump the blood into the ventricles (lower
chambers), thus filling them. 6. The ventricles pump blood out of the
heart and the left ventricle has the thickest walls of the heart because
it has to do most of the work to pump blood to all parts of the body.
This is where the blood has the highest pressure. 7. Vertically dividing
the two sides of the heart is a wall, known as the septum. The septum
prevents the mixing of oxygenated (left side) and deoxygenated (right
side) blood. 8. It also carries electrical signals instructing the
ventricles when to contract. These impulses pass down specially-
modified muscle cells (Purkinje fibres), collectively known as the
Bundle of His.
Most of the cells in the human body are not in direct contact with the
external environment, so rely on the circulatory system to act as a
transport service for them. Two fluids move through the circulatory
system: blood and lymph. The blood, heart, and blood vessels form
the Cardiovascular System. The lymph, lymph nodes and lymph
vessels form the Lymphatic System. The Cardiovascular System and
the Lymphatic System collectively make up the Circulatory System. 1.
Vertebrates have a closed circulatory system, meaning the blood is
repeatedly cycled throughout the body inside a system of pipes. 2. It
was in 1628, when the English Dr. William Harvey showed that blood
circulated throughout the body in oneway vessels. According to him,
blood was pumped out of the heart and into the tissues through one
type of vessel and back to the heart through another type of vessel.
The blood, in other words, moved in a closed cycle through the body.
3. Blood is the bodys internal transportation system. Pumped by the
heart, blood travels through a network of blood vessels, carrying
nutrients (O2, glucose) and hormones to the cells and removing waste
products (CO2. urea) from the 1012 (= 100 trillion) cells of our
bodies.. THE HEART 1. The central organ of the cardiovascular system
is the heart. This is a hollow, muscular organ that contracts at regular
intervals, forcing blood through the circulatory system. 2. The heart is
cone-shaped, about the size of a fist, and is located in the centre of
the thorax, between the lungs, directly behind the sternum
(breastbone). The heart is tilted so that the base is tilted to the left. 3.
The walls of the heart are made up of three layers of tissue: a) The
outer and inner layers are epithelial tissue. b) The middle layer,
comprising the cardiac muscle of the heart itself, is called the
myocardium. 4. For obvious reasons, the cardiac muscle is not under
the conscious control of the nervous system, and can generate its
own electrical rhythm (myogenic). For the same reasons, cardiac
muscle cannot respire anaerobically and so the muscle cannot get
tired (or develop cramp!) 5. Cardiac muscle has a rich supply of blood,
which ensures that it gets plenty of oxygen. This is brought to the
heart through the coronary artery. Since the heart relies on aerobic
respiration to supply its energy needs, cardiac muscle cells are richly
supplied with mitochondria. 6. Our hearts beat about once every
second of every day of our lives, or over 2.5 million times in an
average life span. The only time the heart gets a rest is between
beats. HOW THE HEART WORKS 1. The heart can be thought of as two
pumps sitting side by side each of which has an upper atrium and a
lower ventricle a total of 4 chambers. It functions as two pumps
inside one. 2. The right side of the heart pumps deoxygenated blood
(actually, blood low in oxygen) from the body into the lungs, where
gas exchange takes place. In that process, carbon dioxide is lost to
the air and oxygen is absorbed. This oxygen is almost all carried by
the Red Blood Cells (RBCs). 3. The left side of the heart pumps
oxygenated blood from the lungs to the rest of the body. 4. The heart
is enclosed in a protective membrane-like sac called the pericardium,
which surrounds the heart and secretes a fluid that reduces friction as
the heart beats. 5. The atria (upper chambers) of the heart receive
blood coming into the heart. Then have thin walls, so allowing them to
be filled easily. They pump the blood into the ventricles (lower
chambers), thus filling them. 6. The ventricles pump blood out of the
heart and the left ventricle has the thickest walls of the heart because
it has to do most of the work to pump blood to all parts of the body.
This is where the blood has the highest pressure. 7. Vertically dividing
the two sides of the heart is a wall, known as the septum. The septum
prevents the mixing of oxygenated (left side) and deoxygenated (right
side) blood. 8. It also carries electrical signals instructing the
ventricles when to contract. These impulses pass down specially-
modified muscle cells (Purkinje fibres), collectively known as the
Bundle of His.

The fish heart - the pump

The heart is the pump that generates the driving pressure for the
circulation of blood (P1 = the arterial pressure in the previous pages).
The fish heart has one atrium and one ventricle; this is in contrast to
the human (mammalian) heart that has two separate atria and two
separate ventricles. In the fish heart, two other chambers can also be
found: the sinus venosus and the bulbus arteriosus

The blood from the body, which is low in oxygen enters the atrium via
the sinus venosus, which contains the pacemaker cells that initiate
the contractions. The blood is pumped into the ventricle by the
atrium, which is a thin-walled muscular chamber. Then the blood is
pumped out into the bulbus arteriosus by the ventricle: a thickwalled
chamber with lots of cardiac muscle. The ventricle is responsible for
the generation of the blood pressure. The last chamber, the bulbus
arteriosus, is a unique structure and one of the functions is to
dampen the pressure pulse generated by the ventricle. Why? The
next organ after the bulbus arteriosus are the gills, and they are thin
walled and may be damaged if the pulse pressure (or absolute
pressure) becomes to high. The bulbus arteriosus contains elastic
components but not many muscle fibres.

BIRDS
The avian heart is four-chambered. The right side of the heart receives blood from the
systemic circulation and pressurizes the pulmonary circulation. Blood returns to the left side
of the heart, where the left ventricle then pressurizes the systemic circulation. Both the right
and left ventricles receive blood at the central venous pressure before they enter their
respective outflow tract. This resistance to blood flow (peripheral resistance) is less on the
pulmonary side when compared to the systemic side. For this reason, the left ventricle has
more muscle mass to overcome the increased resistance on the systemic side to produce
the same flow rate as that on the pulmonary side. The relative size of the heart in birds is
inversely related to a species body mass. This suggests that the larger species of birds
have reduced heart mass in comparison to the smaller ones, which have proportionally
larger hearts. This arrangement differs from mammals, as their body mass is directly
proportional to the size of their hearts. This difference may result from the fact that the heart
of larger birds, such as the barnacle goose, can hypertrophy (enlarge) prior to migration so
that their hearts are proportional to their weight. Hummingbirds have proportionally larger
hearts for their size, most likely as a consequence of the high aerobic demands of hovering
flight.

The four chambers of the heart are completely divided into two atria and two ventricles. The
right atrium tends to be larger than the left in most birds. The wall of these chambers
consists of the same components as in mammals the endocardium as the inside lining,
the middle myocardium and the outer epicardium. The muscular myocardium of the atria is
thinner than that of the ventricles. However, the myocardium is arranged in thick muscular
bundles forming muscular arches. The atrial muscles contract to empty blood into the
ventricles during ventricular diastole.

Arthropods possess what we call an open circulatory system. There system consist a dorsal heart and
arteries. The heart and arteries can be very limited, as to the body of an insect, or very extended, as to the
body of a crab. The blood is pumped by the heart. It then moves through the body cavities to reach the
internal organs. There are no veins to bring the blood back to the heart. It is for this reason that blood for
the insects is called "hemolymph". Regular body movements allow for the blood to travel to the dorsal,
also known as pericardial, sinus. Tiny valves open from the heart in other for the hemolymph of the insect
to enter the hear once more. The cycle is then repeated for the duration of the insects life.
The circulatory system also plays a role in defense for its organism.

Insects
The circulatory for the insect is again an open circulatory system. This system seals off wounds, destroys
internal parasites, and produces toxins to ward off predators. In some insects, the circulatory system aids
in ways as a thermoregulation in which it helps cool or heat the body. A dorsal vessel, heart, is important
for the cell circulatory system. This a vessel in which it flows through the thorax and abdomen. This is a
usually a fragile membranous structure that collects hemolymph to carry it towards the head. The heart is
divided into segments that are separated by valves. This is to ensure a one way flow of the hemolymph.
Alary muscles are attached to the walls of each chamber. The blood flow is controlled
by peristaltic contractions. Basically, hemolymph flows through the heart to the head. Then the hemolymph
flows to the internal organs. The blood flow then flows the opposite direction of the heart and reaches the
end in which it flows back to the heart. he heart rate varies between each insect.
Spiders
The blood for spiders is colorless and is also called hemolymph. They are not entirely considered insects
so they get there own section in this site. The circulation of blood transport nutrients throughout the body.
Not only does it do that, but it helps in order body functions. Spiders The blood is used to raise pressure
for when moulting, or shedding there skin, and stretching there legs. The spider is like the insect in that
there are no veins to allow blood flow. the spider has hemolymph pumped through the heart which it then
goes into sinuses surrounding the internal organ. The blood contains hemocyanin which is a
respiratory protein that taints the hemolymph to its clear faint blue color. The dorsal vessel, heart is located
in the abdomen and it is not divided into segments, it is like a tube. Through contractions, the aorta is able
to move the blood to the and past the anterior of the heart. The heart allows hemolymph to enter one end
of the heart and leave at the other end of it.

REPTILES

Reptilian hearts differ significantly from those of mammals. Most reptiles possess three
chambered hearts, with the exception of crocodilians. The anatomy of the great vessels is
quite different from that of mammals and can be confusing to uninitiated. Adequate
knowledge of normal anatomy and function is paramount in assessing health and
performing certain clinical procedures. Reptile cardiovascular physiology is also
significantly different from that of mammals. Reptiles are much less susceptible to the
adverse effects of hypoxia and changes in blood pH, and therefore capable of enduring
much wider fluctuations in heart rate, blood pressure, and oxygenation.

The human heart is an organ that pumps blood throughout the body via the circulatory
system, supplying oxygen and nutrients to the tissues and removing carbon dioxide and
other wastes. The human heart has four chambers: two upper chambers (the
atria) and two lower ones (the ventricles). The right atrium and right ventricle
together make up the "right heart," and the left atrium and left ventricle make up
the "left heart." A wall of muscle called the septum separates the two sides of
the heart.

The heart's outer wall consists of three layers. The outermost wall layer, or
epicardium, is the inner wall of the pericardium. The middle layer, or
myocardium, contains the muscle that contracts. The inner layer, or
endocardium, is the lining that contacts the blood.

Arteries carry oxygen-rich blood from the heart through the body. Veins carry
oxygen-poor blood back to the heart.

The superior vena cava carries oxygen-poor blood into the heart. The aorta
carries oxygenated blood from the heart to organs and tissues.