The activities of Ca-ATPase and Na,K-ATPase in saponin-treated erythrocytes of man, rat and carp were compared. It was shown that at free calcium concentrations lower than 1 microM the activity of Ca-ATPase in carp erythrocytes was by one order of magnitude lower than in rat erythrocytes and 3-4 times lower than in human red blood cells. At [Ca2+] = 0.4 microM the activities of Na,K-ATPase in all species under study were essentially the same. The increase in Ca2+ concentration up to 1 microM resulted in a 2-5-fold activation of Na,K-ATPase in rat and carp erythrocytes, respectively. In all cases studied a further elevation of free calcium concentration was accompanied by a decline of the Na,K-ATPase activity. It was shown that the Pi content in carp erythrocytes is 5-6 times as high as that in mammalian cells. This circumstance is a considerable obstacle to a detailed analysis of mechanisms of ATPase activity regulation in carp erythrocytes by methods used for determination of inorganic phosphate production.