I was contacted again by the International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council ( https://theiwrc.org/ ) recently, and they were seeking a ventral illustration of a bird, to aid in teaching rehabilitators where the inguinal region is for administering sub-cutaneous fluids. This is the illustration I created for them. I thought I'd share it in case it is helpful as an anatomy reference for anyone.
Kinda crazy how birds still have the fingers even tho they dont use them that way anymore, (even tho there are few species that use them when climbing in vegetation).
Really nicely done and fun to see the anatomy.
They still use them! Flighted birds use them to fly. The primary flight feathers anchor there. The "Thumb" controls the alula, a very important flight surface on many species. :)
This is really cool. Is this more or less the same across most any bird, or specific to certain ones?
The basic anatomy is the same, though bone lengths and numbers vary depending on species. Here's a few images. You can see that bone sizes vary, but the basic structure and "plan" is the same.
From a tiny hummingbird:
http://www.hiltonpond.org/ThisWeek070115.html
To an eagle: http://raptors.hancockwildlife.org/staticpages/index.php?page=BEIA_0011
Even penguins, as odd and adapted as their shapes are, carry the same basic skeletal design: http://valleyanatomical.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=77
Very interesting! Thank you for the detailed response. I've started working on learning to draw recently, so I've been very on the lookout for anatomy references and such.
No problem! Here is a simple side view I drew a while back: http://nambroth.deviantart.com/art/Simple-Bird-Skeleton-Diagram-356950410
Link
Noxid
now I'm wondering if it tastes like chicken