spiracle

(noun)

a pore or opening used (especially by spiders and some fish) for breathing

Related Terms

Examples of spiracle in the following topics:

  • Skin, Gills, and Tracheal Systems

    • Insect bodies have openings, called spiracles, along the thorax and abdomen.
    • Air enters and leaves the tracheal system through the spiracles.
    • Insects perform respiration via a tracheal system, in which openings called spiracles allow oxygen to pass into the body.

  • Phylum Arthropoda

    • Insects and myriapods use a series of tubes (tracheae) that branch through the body, open to the outside through openings called spiracles, and perform gas exchange directly between the cells and air in the tracheae.