New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research abstracts

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Acid-base disturbances following exercise in a high-shore crab, Cyclograpsus lavauxi

F. M. WALDRON
H. H. TAYLOR
M. E. FORSTER

Department of Zoology University of Canterbury Private Bag, Christchurch New Zealand

Abstract Cyclograpsus lavauxi, a high-shore crab, suffered a marked acidosis after 10 minutes of moderate exercise in air because of increases in haemolymph lactate concentration and P_CO2. During recovery in sea water, the levels of lactate and Pro,decreased rapidly and resting pH was restored within 2 h. In air, lactate was also metabolised rapidly, but P_rO2 levels declined more slowly than in water and were partly the reason for the continued depression of haemolymph pH at 24 h. There were discrepancies between the concentrations of lactate anions and metabolic protons in the haemolymph during recovery. Protons were removed more rapidly than lactate anions in sea water, which suggests that branchial excretion of acid, and/or uptake of base, was involved in acid-base regulation. The metabolic acid load persisted throughout recovery in air and was, despite possible buffering by mobilisation of CaCO₃, mainly responsible for the continued depression of haemolymph pH. It is concluded that sea water is necessary for the efficient restoration of haemolymph acid-base status after exercise in this species.

Keywords Cyclograpsus; acid-base balance; exercise; water-breathing; air-breathing; lactate; acidosis

New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research, 1986, Vol. 20: 479-487 Received 2 December 1985; accepted 12 December 1985

PDF file of entire paper: medium quality (746K); (scanned from paper original: notes about this process)

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