birds Flashcards
describe the characteristics of their bones 7
reduced number
bones are fused
reduced density
thinner bones
hollow with air sacs
no teeth
no jaw
what’s unique about their skull
fused to form rigid but lightweight box
there are pockets of air that are prominent in flighted birds
describe characteristics about the vertebral column 9 marks
ball and socket joint - atlas
greater number of C vertebrae and flexibility, some are fused together
uncinate processes add to the strength of the rib cage
synsacrum is a shock absorber for flight and landing
first few ribs are short and incomplete
pygostyle is used to support tail feathers and rudder
keel provides muscle attachment of flight muscles
rigid T vertebrae
describe characteristics about the pelvic girdle 3
it rotated backwards and forwards for perching and locomotion
there is an extensive fusion of bones of the pelvic region this provides support for the legs in order to deal with the stress of taking and landing
its incomplete in most species to allow passage of eggs
describe characteristics about the pelvic limbs 4
pelvic limbs fused distally to absorb sock of take off and landing
used for swimming catching pray and wading
covered by feathers and skin to level of inter tarsal joint
scaled below intertarsal joint
describe characteristics about the phalanges 4
most birds have 4 digits
main action of digits is flexion and extension- helps to perch and hold on
birds walk on their toes not their feet
feet used to perch, grasp pray, or they are webbed for swimming
describe characteristics about the wings
consists of humerus, radius, ulna, carpal bones, carometacarpus and 3 digits
describe characteristics about the humerus
short bone
lies against body wall when wing if folded
pneumatic bone- the clavicular airsacs extends into the medullary cavity
describe characteristics about the radius and ulna 4
long bones
lie parallel to eachother
don’t twist
ulna is bigger and lies caudally
describe characteristics about the digits 2
there are 3
feathers are attached to the 1st digits are raised during flight to prevent stalling at slow speeds
what is the difference between medullary and pneumatic bones
medullary are long bones which act as a store of calcium for egg production
pneumatic bones are hollow bones which can be fused together to create a lighter body weight for flight and allow gas exchange using air sacs
describe characteristics about the skin 4
skin has epidermis and dermis
epidermis is outer layer and thin
keratin - scales, feathers and outer layer of beak
birds don’t have sweat glands but they have preen glands on the upper surface of tail which is an oily fatty substance which spreads through feathers and cleans and waterproofs them
what is the beak and mouth used for in digestion
initiates mastication process and have salivary glands to help lubricate food, also used for tearing meat, cracking seeds, straining feed particles and spearing and probing
describe the characteristics of the oesophagus 3
starts at the mouth and ends at the proventriculus
lies to the right side of the neck
lined with stratified epithelium containing mucous glands
describe the characteristics of the crop 5
also known as a diverticulum
this serves as a storage device for food to be carried away,
it can also lubricate feedstuffs
further enables digestion.
this allows the bird to reduce its eating time to a few meals a day rather than continually feeding and risking predation
describe the characteristics of the stomach
made of 2 parts
the glandular proventriculus - initiation of chemical digestion. indigestible material is regurgitated into pellets in raptors
muscular ventriculus/ gizzard- made up of striated muscle allowing the grinding of food, varies on bird size and species, seed and insect eating birds have stronger muscles here, carnivores don’t have this
describe the characteristics of the pancreas and liver 2
the pancreas is more developed in birds
it produces enzymes for digesting carbs fats and proteins. the liver has 2 lobes each with its own duct leading into the Si
describe the characteristics of the small intestine 3
short and highly convoluted
thin walled and narrow
the intestinal epithelium has folds and villi
describe the characteristics of the large intestine
can contain 2 large caece enabling micro fermentation of a high fibre diet
they serve to enable bacterial digestion of complex carbs
describe the characteristics of the cloaca
coprodeum - collects faeces
urodeum - collects urine
proctodeum - urine and faeces are combined and excreted
what happens during excretion 3
urine and faeces are combined and passed as urate
the white outer ring being urine and the inner brown ring being faeces.
abdnormal urate will appear yellow or green
respiratory system components 9
external nares
nasal cavity
oral cavity
glottis - opening into trachea
trachea - larynx at the start (doesn’t produce sound)
syrinx - muscles and air sacs (voice box) some birds have 7 pairs of muscles
bronchi in lungs
trachea divides into two bronchi which have complete rings unlike dogs
mesobrinchi- where further division takes place