Aerial respiration is the gulping of air at the surface of water to directly extract oxygen from the atmosphere. Aerial respiration evolved in fish that were exposed to more frequent hypoxia; also, species that engage in aerial respiration tend to be more hypoxia tolerant than those which do not air-breath during the hypoxia.
There are two main types of air breathing fish—facultative and non-facultative. Under normoxic conditions facultative fish can survive without having to breathe air from the surface of the water. However, non-facultative fish must respire at the surface even in normal dissolved oxygen levels because their gills cannot extract enough oxygen from the water.
Many air breathing freshwater teleosts use ABOs to effectively extract oxygen from air while maintaining functions of the gills. ABOs are modified gastrointestinal tracts, gas bladders, and labyrinth organs; they are highly vascularized and provide additional method of extracting oxygen from the air. Fish also use ABO for storing the retained oxygen.