Deck 21: Avian Anatomy and Physiology

Question 1

What type of feather, located at the nape and upper back, has follicles that contain sensitive nerve endings that play a sensory role in controlling feather movement?

A) contour
B) down
C) filoplume
D) semiplume

Answer 1

filoplume

Question 2

The tiny hooklets at the end of each barbule are known as

A) barbs.
B) hamuli.
C) quills.
D) vanes.

Answer 2

hamuli.

Question 3

The flight feathers in the wing are called

A) hamuli.
B) patagia.
C) remiges.
D) rectrices.

Answer 3

remiges.

Question 4

The tiny opening on the feather shaft where the webbed part of a feather begins is the

A) calamus.
B) inferior umbilicus.
C) superior umbilicus.
D) vane.

Question 5

Most feather-picking results in feather loss on the

A) chest and legs.
B) legs and wings.
C) tail and chest.
D) wings and tail.

Question 6

What type of feathers are the flight feathers of the wings and tail?

A) bristle
B) contour
C) filoplume
D) semiplume

Question 7

The flight feathers in the tail are called

A) coverts.
B) hamuli.
C) patagia.
D) rectrices.

Question 8

The covering of a feather as it emerges from the skin is called the

A) apteria.
B) hamuli.
C) periderm.
D) pteryla.

Question 9

What type of bird has claws called talons?

A) birds of prey
B) climbing birds
C) ground feeders
D) scavengers

Question 10

The round, hollow, semitransparent part of a contour feather below where the webbed part of the feather begins is the

A) calamus.
B) hamulus.
C) rachis.
D) vane.

Question 11

Pterylae are

A) areas of skin covered with feathers.
B) areas on a feather vane where barbs lack barbules.
C) bare areas of skin.
D) growing feathers.

Question 12

The term for trimming or reshaping a beak is

A) coping.
B) feaking.
C) pinioning.
D) preening.

Question 13

The web-like flattened part of a feather that lies on either side of the main feather shaft is the

A) barb.
B) hamulus.
C) rachis.
D) vane.

Question 14

What type of feather provides waterproofing for a bird?

A) bristle
B) contour
C) filoplume
D) powder down

Question 15

The uropygial gland is located on the

A) dorsal surface at the upper base of the tail.
B) dorsal surface of the cere.
C) lateral surface of the cere.
D) ventral surface at the upper base of the tail.

Question 16

What type of feather lacks a true shaft and provides insulation for the bird?

A) bristle
B) down
C) powder down
D) semiplume

Question 17

The quill of a feather is another name for the

A) barbule.
B) calamus.
C) rachis.
D) superior umbilicus.

Question 18

The main feather shaft of a contour feather is the

A) calamus.
B) hamulus.
C) rachis.
D) vane.

Question 19

What type of feather serves a bird's sense of touch?

A) bristle
B) contour
C) filoplume
D) semiplume

Question 20

What type of feather never stops growing?

A) down
B) filoplume
C) powder down
D) semiplume

Question 21

A growing feather is called a/an

A) afterfeather.
B) auricular feather.
C) blood feather.
D) remiges feather.

Question 22

The atlas is attached to the __ by a single condyle in birds.

A) first thoracic vertebra
B) pygostyle
C) skull
D) synsacrum

Question 23

Red muscles are the predominant muscle type in a

A) chicken.
B) grouse.
C) pigeon.
D) quail.

Question 24

The first finger of a wing is the

A) alula.
B) patagium.
C) pygostyle.
D) trochanter.

Question 25

The shock absorber for the legs and backbone of a bird when it lands is the

A) keel.
B) pygostyle.
C) synsacrum.
D) uncinate process.

Question 26

Which bones are known collectively as the wishbone?

A) atlas and axis
B) clavicles
C) coracoids
D) scapulas

Question 27

The drumstick is actually the

A) femur.
B) fibula.
C) ilium.
D) tibiotarsus.

Question 28

The gape of a bird determines the

A) neck flexibility.
B) range of sound waves it hears.
C) size of food it can ingest.
D) visual perception.

Question 29

The bony ridge on the sternum of strong flying birds is the

A) keel.
B) pygostyle.
C) synsacrum.
D) uncinate process.

Question 30

Which adaptation to the skeletal system is key to the ability of birds to fly?

A) increase in the number of bones
B) increased density of bones
C) loss of internal bone matrix
D) loss of the appendicular skeleton

Question 31

The sclerotic ring is found around the

A) ear canal.
B) eye socket.
C) lower bill.
D) upper bill.

Question 32

The wing attaches to the body by forming a joint

A) in the glenoid cavity.
B) in the patagium.
C) with the pygostyle.
D) with the synsacrum.

Question 33

An anisodactyl bird has the following toe arrangement:

A) one toe facing backward and three toes facing forward.
B) one toe facing forward and three toes facing backward.
C) toes one and four facing forward and toes two and three facing backward.
D) toes two and three facing forward and toes one and four facing backward.

Question 34

A characteristic of white muscle is

A) a high fat content.
B) a high number of mitochondria.
C) a low blood supply.
D) a thin fiber.

Question 35

The web of skin that extends from the shoulder to the wrist to provide elasticity and aerodynamics is the

A) alula.
B) patagium.
C) pygostyle.
D) triosseal canal.

Question 36

A zygodactyl bird has

A) one toe facing backward and three toes facing forward.
B) one toe facing forward and three toes facing backward.
C) toes one and four facing forward and toes two and three facing backward.
D) toes two and three facing forward and toes one and four facing backward.

Question 37

Where is the uncinate process found?

A) around the eye socket
B) attached to ribs
C) in the neck
D) in the tail

Question 38

The pectoral crest is found on the

A) femur.
B) humerus.
C) scapula.
D) sternum.

Question 39

The pelvic girdle is made up of the

A) femur, ilium, and synsacrum.
B) ilium, ischium, and pubis.
C) pubis, ischium, and femur.
D) synsacrum, pubis, and ischium.

Question 40

The forearm of the wing is formed by the

A) carpal bones.
B) humerus.
C) radius and ulna.
D) scapula.

Question 41

Which gland secretes a hormone that regulates body and feather growth and may stimulate the migration urge?

A) parathyroid
B) pituitary
C) thymus
D) thyroid

Question 42

Leg muscles control movements of the distal leg and toes via their

A) ligaments of insertion.
B) ligaments of origin.
C) tendons of insertion.
D) tendons of origin.

Question 43

The large muscle that causes the downstroke of a wing is the __ muscle.

A) pectoralis
B) psoas
C) semitendinosus
D) supracoracoideus

Question 44

When a bird rubs its beak on a rough surface to clean it and maintain its shape, it is called

A) coping.
B) feaking.
C) molting.
D) preening.

Question 45

In birds the __ is located at the terminal end of the digestive system.

A) cecum
B) cloaca
C) cochlea
D) corpus

Question 46

The glandular stomach in birds is called the

A) crop.
B) gizzard.
C) proventriculus.
D) ventriculus.

Question 47

The columella is the

A) eardrum.
B) external ear flap.
C) inner ear labyrinth.
D) single middle ear bone.

Question 48

In birds the storage space for ingested food before it reaches the stomach is the

A) crater.
B) crop.
C) croup.
D) crypt.

Question 49

The area of sharpest vision in the eye is the

A) fovea.
B) optic disk.
C) pecten.
D) retina.

Question 50

Grandry's corpuscle and Herbst corpuscle are located on the

A) flight feathers.
B) legs.
C) tongue.
D) wings.

Question 51

A mute is ejected from the

A) coprodeum.
B) duodenum.
C) proctodeum.
D) urodeum.

Question 52

A bird is able to perch and sleep at the same time because of the

A) coping reflex.
B) feaking reflex.
C) perching reflex.
D) sleeping reflex.

Question 53

The bursa of Fabricius stimulates the production of

A) antibodies.
B) FSH.
C) sex hormones.
D) stress hormones.

Question 54

The __ collects excrement from the intestines of a bird.

A) cecum
B) coprodeum
C) urodeum
D) vent

Question 55

How many eyelids protect the cornea of a bird eye?

A) 0
B) 2
C) 3
D) 4

Question 56

Bumblefoot can result from

A) beak neglect.
B) claw neglect.
C) damage to the alula.
D) damage to the cere.

Question 57

The smaller flight muscle that causes the upstroke of the wing is the

A) pectoralis.
B) psoas.
C) semitendinosus.
D) supracoracoideus.

Question 58

The purpose of the gizzard is to

A) grind food.
B) lubricate food.
C) secrete digestive hormones.
D) secrete digestive enzymes.

Question 59

What bird can grind indigestible food components into a pellet that is regurgitated?

A) chicken
B) owl
C) turkey
D) wren

Question 60

What is the function of the nictitating membrane?

A) color vision
B) corneal moisturization
C) hearing sharpness
D) vision clarity

Question 61

Heterophils in avian blood are equivalent to __ in mammalian blood.

A) eosinophils
B) lymphocytes
C) monocytes
D) neutrophils

Question 62

The unpaired air sac in birds is the

A) caudal thoracic air sac.
B) cervical air sac.
C) cranial thoracic air sac.
D) interclavicular air sac.

Question 63

What type of newly hatched chicks is covered with downy feathers, has its eyes open, and is quickly mobile?

A) altricial
B) precocial
C) semialtricial
D) semiprecocial

Question 64

In birds, which gonad is rudimentary and doesn't function?

A) left ovary
B) left testis
C) right ovary
D) right testis

Question 65

Where is pigment added to the egg shell?

A) isthmus
B) magnum
C) uterus
D) vagina

Question 66

What combination of inspirations and expirations is needed to transport one pocket of air through the avian respiratory system?

A) 2 inhalations, 1 expiration
B) 2 inhalations, 2 expirations
C) 3 inhalations, 2 expirations
D) 3 inhalations, 3 expirations

Question 67

Lymphocytes in birds are produced by the

A) bursa of Fabricius and red bone marrow.
B) kidneys and thymus.
C) red bone marrow and kidneys.
D) thymus and bursa of Fabricius.

Question 68

Which layer of the oviduct secretes layers of albumin around the egg?

A) infundibulum
B) isthmus
C) magnum
D) vagina

Question 69

The three veins most often used for venipuncture in birds are the

A) brachial, lateral metatarsal, and radial.
B) jugular, brachial, and medial metatarsal.
C) medial metatarsal, lateral metatarsal, and jugular.
D) radial, brachial, and jugular.

Question 70

Which layer of the oviduct is called the shell gland?

A) isthmus
B) magnum
C) uterus
D) vagina

Question 71

Avian red blood cells differ from mammalian red blood cells in that they are

A) granulated.
B) nucleated.
C) round.
D) smaller.

Question 72

What type of newly hatched chick is blind and bare-skinned when hatched?

A) altricial
B) precocial
C) semialtricial
D) semiprecocial

Question 73

How many air sacs make up the avian respiratory system?

A) one pair plus one unpaired
B) three pairs plus one unpaired
C) four pairs plus one unpaired
D) five pairs plus one unpaired

Question 74

A typical, healthy mute is composed of

A) a dark fecal center surrounded by a ring of white urates.
B) a dark urate center surrounded by a ring of light fecal material.
C) a light urate center surrounded by a ring of dark fecal material.
D) a white fecal center surrounded by a ring of dark urates.

Question 75

Species of birds that lay only a specific number of eggs to incubate and won't lay more if those eggs are removed are

A) brood layers.
B) clutch layers.
C) determinate layers.
D) indeterminate layers.

Question 76

The number of eggs a female lays and incubates is called a

A) clutch.
B) brood.
C) colony.
D) bevy.

Question 77

Gular fluttering is a mechanism for

A) flying at high altitudes.
B) passing mute.
C) thermoregulation.
D) touch sensation.

Question 78

In order to prevent heat loss in birds,

A) heat from warmer arteries coming from the heart is transferred to cooler veins returning to the heart.
B) heat from warmer arteries returning to the heart is transferred to cooler veins leaving the heart.
C) heat from warmer veins coming from the heart is transferred to cooler arteries returning to the heart.
D) heat from warmer veins returning to the heart is transferred to cooler arteries leaving the heart.

Question 79

The mouth and nasal chambers in birds are joined by internal nares called the

A) choanae.
B) cholagogue.
C) cloaca.
D) cochlea.

Question 80

The syrinx is also known as the

A) air sac.
B) epiglottis.
C) glottis.
D) voice box.