Sophie Bennett
A chick breathes inside its shell through a complex process that involves the shell's pores, membranes, and an air sac. The shell of a chicken egg has thousands of tiny pores that allow oxygen to enter and carbon dioxide to escape. As the egg cools after being laid, its contents shrink, creating an air cell or air sack filled with oxygen, which the chick uses to breathe. This air sack is connected to the chick's circulatory system through a membrane called the chorioallantoic membrane, which acts like lung tissue, facilitating gas exchange. The chick's heart pumps blood through this membrane, absorbing oxygen and releasing carbon dioxide. This process ensures the chick receives oxygen and eliminates waste gases while sealed inside the eggshell.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| How do animals that grow inside their mothers get oxygen? | Through the umbilical cord, which is connected to the mother's lungs. |
| How do animals that develop outside their mothers, like chicks, get oxygen? | Bird and reptile eggs have two membranes under their hard shell. When the eggs are laid, they are warmer than the air, and as they cool, the material inside the egg shrinks, pulling the two membranes apart, leaving an air cell, also called an air sack, filled with oxygen. |
| How does the chick breathe inside the egg? | The egg shell has hundreds of tiny pores that allow the chick to breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide. |
| How do we know that the pores in the egg shell allow air in and out? | If the pores in the shells of chicken eggs allow materials to cross back and forth between the inside and outside of the egg, then the air inside the egg could be replaced by water, as water is heavier than air. When eggs are boiled in water, they end up weighing slightly more than when they were raw. |
| When does the chick start breathing inside the egg? | Inside the shell, they break the air sac and begin to breathe, and then they make their first hole in the shell. |
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What You'll Learn
Oxygen enters through the shell's pores
All animal life requires oxygen to survive. When animals inhale, oxygen enters the lungs and is then distributed to all parts of the body. This oxygen is used in an internal chemical reaction called metabolism to provide the animal with energy. This process also produces a waste gas called carbon dioxide, which must be exhaled.
Chicks, like all animals, require oxygen to survive. However, they develop inside an egg outside of their mother's body and do not have umbilical cords, so how do they take in oxygen and expel carbon dioxide?
Bird and reptile eggs have a hard shell. Directly under the shell are two membranes. When the eggs are laid by the mother, they are warmer than the air, and as they cool, the material inside the egg shrinks a little bit. This shrinking pulls the two membranes apart, leaving behind an air cell, also called an air sack, that is filled with oxygen. As the chick develops, it uses the oxygen, which must be replenished, and it also has to release carbon dioxide.
The egg shell around the developing chick has hundreds of pores. These pores allow the exchange of air, letting carbon dioxide escape and fresh air, containing oxygen, enter the egg. This is how the respiratory system of a chick inside an egg works.
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The allantois, a membranous bag, helps the chick breathe
The allantois is a membranous bag that helps a chick breathe inside its shell. It is a hollow, sac-like structure that grows out of the bottom part of the chick's developing gut. The allantois is attached at one end to the chick's gut, while the other end lies close to the inner surface of the egg shell.
The allantois is one of the extra-embryonic membranes arising from the yolk sac. It is filled with clear fluid and forms part of the developing conceptus in an amniote, aiding the embryo in gas exchange and handling liquid waste. The allantois also helps the embryo in shell Ca++ resorption and bone formation.
In the chick's early development, the allantois fuses with a second membrane, the chorion, which surrounds the chick and its yolk. Together, they form the chorioallantoic membrane. This membrane acts like lung tissue, connecting the chick's circulatory system to the outside world. Oxygen diffuses through microscopic pores in the shell to the blood vessels in the chorioallantoic membrane, and then on to the chick's bloodstream. Carbon dioxide, a waste product of respiration, passes in the opposite direction.
The allantois is also used as a bag to store nitrogen-containing waste. It is important to note that the allantois only forms as part of a developing embryo. If there is no chick inside the egg, there is no allantois.
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The chorioallantoic membrane acts like lung tissue
The chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) is a highly vascularized membrane found in the eggs of certain amniotes, such as birds and reptiles. It is formed by the fusion of the mesodermal layers of two extra-embryonic membranes—the chorion and the allantois. This process begins around day 3 of embryonic development, with partial fusion occurring between days 5 and 6, and complete differentiation achieved by day 13. The CAM is composed of three layers: the chorionic epithelium, the intermediate mesodermal layer, and the allantoic epithelium.
The CAM functions as the site of gaseous exchange for oxygen and carbon dioxide between the growing embryo and the environment. It acts as a gas-exchange organ, receiving oxygen and eliminating carbon dioxide through the pores in the shell. This is similar to the function of lung tissue, which takes in oxygen and releases carbon dioxide. The CAM's extensive system of blood vessels enables this exchange, and its proximity to the pores in the shell facilitates the absorption of calcium ions, which are transported in the bloodstream to the embryo.
The development of the CAM is analogous to that of the allantois in mammals. It is the outermost extra-embryonic membrane, lining the non-vascular egg shell membrane. The CAM also helps maintain acid-base homeostasis in the embryo and acts as a selectively permeable barrier, allowing the absorption of water and electrolytes while protecting against toxins and waste materials stored in the allantoic cavity.
The CAM has been used in various research applications due to its ease of access, rapid membrane development, and suitability for imaging techniques. For example, it has been used to study angiogenesis and tumour growth, wound repair, toxicology, drug delivery, and the cultivation of viruses. Additionally, the CAM has been utilized for grafting portions of the regenerating post-pneumonectomy lung, demonstrating functional lumenization between species (mouse and chick) and across developmental stages (adult and embryo).
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The chick's circulatory system connects to the outside world
A chick's circulatory system connects to the outside world through the egg's pores, membranes, and air cell.
The egg's pores are tiny holes in the shell that allow oxygen to enter and carbon dioxide to exit. This is essential for the chick's survival as it enables gas exchange for the developing embryo. The pores also permit water vapour exchange, which can be observed when hard-boiling an egg, as the air inside is replaced by water, causing a slight increase in weight.
Underneath the shell are two membranes. When the egg is laid, it is warmer than the surrounding air, and as it cools, the contents shrink slightly, creating a small air cell between the membranes. This air cell, or air sack, is filled with oxygen, providing the embryo with its initial oxygen supply.
As the chick develops, it consumes oxygen and produces carbon dioxide. The oxygen in the air cell must be replenished, and the carbon dioxide released. This is achieved through the pores, which facilitate gas exchange with the outside environment.
The chick's circulatory system, driven by its embryonic heart, further supports its respiratory function. The allantois, a membrane that surrounds the embryo, plays a critical role in gas exchange. It develops an extensive circulatory system connected to the embryo's vascular system, facilitating the distribution of oxygen and removal of carbon dioxide.
In summary, a chick's circulatory system interacts with the outside world through the egg's pores, membranes, and air cell. This system ensures a continuous supply of oxygen and the removal of carbon dioxide, enabling the chick's survival and development within the protective shell.
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The chick breathes inside the shell before making its first hole in the shell
The chick embryo inside an egg needs oxygen to survive and develop. Directly under the egg's hard shell are two membranes. When the egg is laid, it is warmer than the air, and as it cools, the material inside the egg shrinks a little, pulling the two membranes apart. This creates an air cell, also called an air sack, filled with oxygen. The developing chick breathes using this oxygen and releases carbon dioxide in return. The tiny pores in the shell allow the carbon dioxide to escape and fresh air to enter the egg. This is how the chick's respiratory system works before it makes its first hole in the shell.
The pores in chicken egg shells are large enough to allow materials to pass through them. When eggs are boiled, the air inside the egg is replaced by water, which is heavier than air. This is why an egg weighs slightly more after being hard-boiled. Freshly laid eggs do not allow water to penetrate as well as older, commercial eggs.
The blood vessels that form inside the shell absorb oxygen and transfer it to the chick. This is similar to how reptile eggs work, although reptile eggs tend to have a slightly larger air pocket. Bird eggs, unlike reptile eggs, can be moved from the position they were laid in without smothering the air pocket and suffocating the embryo.
Chicks start breathing when they pip, which means they break the air sac and begin to breathe inside the shell before they make their first hole in the shell. At this stage, they make their first peeping sounds, even before they zip, which is when they start pecking a line open around the shell.
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Frequently asked questions
A chick breathes inside its shell with the help of a structure called the allantois, a hollow sac that grows out of its gut and fuses with a second membrane, the chorion, which surrounds the chick and its yolk. Together, they form the chorioallantoic membrane, which acts as lung tissue, connecting the chick's circulatory system to the outside world. Oxygen enters the egg through microscopic pores in the shell, and carbon dioxide exits through the same pores.
The allantois is a membranous bag that develops early on in chick embryonic development. One end is attached to the chick's gut, while the other lies close to the inner surface of the egg shell. It has a network of blood vessels within it, and it is used to store nitrogen-containing waste.
A chicken egg shell has more than 7,000 pores, which allow for the exchange of gases.
Breathing is still the most appropriate way to describe lungless gas exchange in chicks inside an egg.
If a fertilised chicken egg is placed under water, the chick inside will be starved of oxygen and will suffocate.
