Avian Anatomy

DirecAonal  descriptors  
•  Dorsal  vs  ventral  
–  Spine-­‐side  vs  belly-­‐side  
•  Cranial  vs  caudal  
–  Head-­‐ward  vs  tail-­‐ward  
•  Medial  vs  lateral  
–  Towards  midline  vs  away  from  midline  
•  Proximal  vs  distal  
–  Near  to  vs  farther  from  a  reference  or  origin  point  
•  The  elbow  is  distal  to  the  shoulder  but  proximal  to  the  
wrist  
 Directional descriptors

Caudal Rostral
Respiratory  system  
•  Air  passes  through  nares  to  
choana  to  trachea  
•  No  diaphragm  
–  Must  move  keel  to  breathe  
•  One  way  flow  thru  lungs  
–  No  alveoli  
•  Syrinx  at  bifurcaAon  of  
bronchi  
•  Air  sac  system  
Tonguelessness  

J.R. Compton 2007

Food-­‐related  receptors  in  bird  mouths  

•  Touch  and  temperature  

receptors  
•  Important  for  palatability  
The use of distal rhynchokinesis during food procurement

Estrella, S. M. et al. J Exp Biol 2007;210:3757-3762

Taste  buds:  ‘taste  pores’  
Figure 5 Schematic diagram of
the distribution of taste pores in
the chicken oral cavity. One dot
in the figure corresponds to
one taste pore. We display one
sample at post hatching day 3
(H3) with the number of taste
pores being the nearest
average value of the total
number of taste pores. (a)
Palate. (b) Base of the oral
cavity. (c) Ventrolateral portion
cut out from the root of the
tongue, and placed side down.
(A) Lateral palatine wrinkles.
(B) Palatine papillae. (C)
Papillae of the choanal
opening. (D) Choana. (E)
Papillae of the pharynx. (F)
Lingual papillae. Kudo et al.
Animal Science Journal (2008)
79, 680–685
Taste  buds:  ‘taste  pores’  
•  Not  on  papillae,  locaAon  variable,  oMen  near  
salivary  openings  
•  Receptors:  
•  Sweet  
•  Sour  
•  BiOer  
•  Salt  
•  Umami  
Figure 3 Scanning electron micrographs of a salivary gland opening and neighboring
taste pores. The arrows indicate the taste pore, and SG represents the opening of the
salivary gland. (a) Maxillary gland. Scale bar: 100 µm (b) Anterior mandibular gland. Scale
bar: 20 µm. Kudo et al. Animal Science Journal (2008) 79, 680–685
 Entering
GI Tract ribcage
Esophagus

Anatomy

Proventriculus
Liver
Liver
Ventriculus
Gall bladder

Duodenum
Small intestine Pancreas

Ceca
Colon

Cloaca
Adapted from Proctor and Lynch 1996
Fig. 2.8. A cross-section of the stomach of a chicken, which consists of the
proventriculus and the ventriculus, or gizzard. The koilin lining, or cuticle, is especially
thick directly over the two thick lateral muscles.
 Western Grebe

Esophagus

Proventriculus

Ventriculus
Feather
ball

Koilin layer
Generic
bird
skeleton
Skeletal  adaptaAons  for  aquaAc  life  

Short femurs

Muscular tibiotarsi
Long keels parallel to spine
 The  head  
Skull Eye and orbit
Nares

Maxilla (or upper mandible)

Mandible

Neck
vertebrae

Commissures of
mouth
Humerus   Shoulder:  
• Humerus  
• Clavicle  
• Coracoid  
• Scapula  
The  shoulder  
Clavicle  

Coracoid  
 Ulna  

Radius  

Elbow  
 Alula  

Carpometacarpus  

Wrist  
Keel  
Hip  
Knee  

Femur  
 Knee  

Hock   Tibiotarsus  
 Tarsometatarsus  
Hock  
 Tarsometatarsus  

Foot  joint   Hock  

 P2 P1
P3
Medial Digit 1

D2 Lateral

D3 P1-5

D4
Left foot
Right foot
LD1

D2P1

D2P2

D2P3
At   i ntake   a nd   at   rouAne   h andlings  
Common  Injuries  of  AquaAc  Birds  
–  Feather  contaminaAon/damage  
–  Foot  and  hock  lesions  
–  Fish  hook  and  line  injuries  
–  Predator  bites  
–  Fractures  
Preparing  for  the  exam  
•  Be  thoughTul  and  efficient    
–  Have  everything  ready  
–  5-­‐7  min.  exam  
–  Visual  barrier  
–  Limit  conversaAon  
•  Knowledge  of  natural  history    
–  Anatomy    
–  Defense  mechanism  
–  Restraint  method  
–  Appropriate  restraint  intensity  
–  Prevent  bird  from  hurAng  self  or  humans  
during  exam  
Components  of  the  exam  
•  Read  record/history  
•  Visual  exam  
•  Full  physical  exam:  
–  ThermoregulaAon  check  
–  Body  weight/condiAon  check  
–  IdenAficaAon  of  new  problems  
–  MaturaAon  of  juveniles  
–  Wound/injury  changes  
–  Periodic  blood  sampling  
•  Assess  current  treatment  plan  or  
create  if  new  bird  
Temperature  is  CriAcal  
•  Normal  =  102-­‐108  F    
•  Marginal  =  101-­‐102  degrees:  if  BAR  do  
quick  exam,  then  into  warm  
environment  
•  Cold  =    <  99–100:  warm  with  
supplemental  heat,  finish  exam  when  
warm  
•  CriAcally  cold  =    <98:  Consider  warm  IV,  
warm  incubator  ,  other  rapid  warming  
methods  
•  Species  temps  vary.  Grebes  tend  to  run  
cooler  101-­‐102F  while  gulls  and  
cormorants  run  hot  105-­‐109F.    
Doing  the  physical  exam  
•  Weigh,  temp  bird  
•  Head  to  toe  exam  (not  in  that  order)  
–  Spine:  shoulders  to  tail  
–  Shoulders:  clavicles,  coracoids,  head  of  humerus  
–  Wings:  shoulders  to  wingAps  
–  Keel:  BC,  feel  for  fxs  
–  Abdomen/vent  
–  Legs:  femurs  to  toes  
Doing  a  physical  exam  
•  Turn  bird  around  
–  Palpate  skull  
–  Examine  head/eyes/mouth  
–  Assess  mentaAon,  hydraAon    
•  Turn  bird  around  again,  re-­‐covering  
head  
•  Blood  draw  (do  last)  
•  HydraAon  
•  If  poo  available,  look  at  it!  Fecal  
exam?  
Finishing  the  exam  
–  For  every  body  part,  look  for  asymmetries,  fractures,  
wounds  
–  Feather  coat  texture  –  sAcky?  dirty?  oily?  broken  feathers?  
–  Warm  water  pool  use  as  a  diagnosAc  tool  
 Treatment  Plan  
•  Fluid  therapy  regime:  type,  route,  frequency  
•  NutriAonal  support:  what,  how  much,  frequency  
•  MedicaAons:  drug,  dosage,  duraAon  
•  Special  species  consideraAons:  housing,  donuts,  foot  
wraps?  
•  Note  plan  in  medical  record  and  on  white  board  
Recording  findings  
•  Describe  abnormaliAes  in  record  
•  Describe  what  you  see  rather  than  interpre+ng  it  
–  DescripAve  language  =  size,  dimensions,  shape,  texture,  
color,  smell  
–  InterpreAve  =  “beOer”,  “worse”,  “healing”,  “healthy”  
Sources  of  stress  while  in  rehab  
•  Illness  
•  Injury  
•  Pain  
•  Abnormal  interacAons  with  other  
animals  
•  Unnatural  environment/diets  
•  Human  proximity/handling/noise  

•  Goal  is  to  minimize  pain  and  stress  

whenever  possible  
 Effects  of  Stress  
Physiological  
Physical  
     Acute  
–  Open-­‐mouthed  
–  Increased  heart  &  
breathing  (panAng)  
respiratory  rate  
•  Gular  fluOer  
–  Increased  body  temp  
–  Labored  breathing  
–  Increased  blood  
pressure   –  Voiding  urates/feces  
Chronic   –  RegurgitaAon  
–  Delayed  healing   –  Defensive  behaviors  
–  Bone  marrow  
suppression  
–  Impaired  nutriAon  
Put  yourself  in  their  place…  
When  to  noAfy  a  staff  person  
•  Bird  cold  <100F    
•  Serious  injury  found  
•  Too  quiet,  inacAve,  poorly  responsive  
•  Open-­‐mouthed  breathing  
•  Not  eaAng  when  previously  was  
•  RegurgitaAng  
•  Bleeding  (situaAonal…)  
•  Old  problem  looks  worse  than  previously  described  
•  New  problem  noAced  
Questions?