Bicarbonate bicarbonate – in conjunction with water, hydrogen ions, and carbon dioxide – forms this buffering system, which is maintained at the volatile equilibrium required to provide prompt resistance to pH changes in both the acidic and basic directions. This is especially important for protecting tissues of the central nervous system, where pH changes too far outside of the normal range in either direction could prove disastrous (see acidosis or alkalosis). Bicarbonate also serves much in the digestive system. It raises the internal pH of the stomach, after highly acidic digestive juices have finished in their digestion of food. Bicarbonate also
Digestive system of humpback whales Digestive system of humpback whales The digestive system of humpback whales ("Megaptera novaeangliae") is adapted to digest tiny crustaceans such as krill, plankton, and small fish (including herring and mackerel) which the whale filters from the ocean using its baleen, a sieve-like structure in the upper jaw. Humpback whales belong to the parvorder baleen whales, which are carnivorous, seasonal feeders. The baleen, a sieve-like structure in the upper jaw made of keratin, is used to filter plankton, among other food sources, from the water. Ventral grooves are expandable concave furrows that line a whale's throat and have the peculiarity of