Characteristics Blood has a distinctive, somewhat metallic, odor. Arterial blood is bright red or scarlet and usually pulsates if the artery has been cut.
Venous blood is dark red or crimson and flows steadily from a cut vein.
The plasma is mostly water and transports many materials. The leukocytes comprise neutrophils, eosinophils, basophils, lymphocytes, and monocytes. The pH of the blood is from 7.35 to 7.45. The specific gravity of blood varies from 1.048 to 1.066, the corpuscles being heavier and plasma lighter than this. Blood is of slightly higher specific gravity in men than in women.