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According to the Wikipedia page on the design of gills, oxygen has a diffusion rate in air 10,000 times greater than in water. Is that true?

The WP entry refers to: M.B.V. Roberts, Michael Reiss, Grace Monger (2000). Advanced Biology. London, UK: Nelson. pp. 164–165.

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There's no clear biological scope in this question, although a good answer has already been posted. – Rory M♦ Feb 15 at 23:40
I've slightly rewritten the question to make it clear that the OP was coming at this from a biological perspective. (The OP had already linked to the page on gills and cited the Advanced Biology textbook.) – Alan Boyd Feb 16 at 7:23

closed as off topic by MattDMo, Rory M♦ Feb 15 at 23:39

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1 Answer

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Yes, according to calculations presented here and here the conclusion is that:

The O2 diffusion coefficient in saturated air (15% oxygen) is 5,700 to 10,800 times greater than in water (60°C and 20°C respectively).

And here is a paper using this difference to investigate the transfer of O2 through the tracheal system of a click beetle.

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