======Pigeon Dissection======


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**Materials: **{{$demo.materials_description}}\\
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**Alternative titles:** Avian Anatomy: Pigeon
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====Summary====                   
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====Procedure====  
  *Follow instructions provided in the links below.


====Links==== 
Pigeon Dissection - UofRFacultyofScience: 
{{youtube>9GCzW27oDFI?}}\\

Pigeon Dissection; Feathers, Muscles & Skeleton Revealed - Museum Beetles: 
{{youtube>m26XHLTqYm0?}}\\

📄 Dissection of Pigeon (With Diagram) | Zoology - Biology Discussion: [[https://www.biologydiscussion.com/zoology/pigeon/dissection-of-pigeon-with-diagram-zoology/45131]]\\


====Variations====
  * Compare pigeon anatomy with a domestic chicken to highlight flight vs. limited-flight adaptations.
  * Map airflow through lungs and air sacs using gentle inflation to visualize sac boundaries.
  * Focused study: trace only the hepatic portal circulation or only the brachial/subclavian supply to wings.
  * Replace wet dissection with a virtual or plastinated specimen session when specimens are not available.



====Safety Precautions====
  * Wear gloves, safety goggles, and a lab coat; tie back hair and avoid loose clothing.
  * Use scissors for most cuts; if using a scalpel, cut away from hands and partners.
  * Handle the sternum and ribs carefully to avoid sharp bone edges.
  * Do not over-inflate air sacs; apply only minimal pressure to prevent aerosolization or tissue rupture.
  * Treat all tissues and fluids as biohazard; follow local disposal rules and teacher instructions.
  * Wash hands thoroughly and disinfect benches and instruments after the lab.
  * Use ethically sourced or preserved specimens; do not perform euthanasia in class.




====Questions to Consider====
  * How do the pectoralis major and supracoracoideus collaborate to power flight? (Major depresses the wing; supracoracoideus elevates it via a tendon through the foramen triosseum.)
  * Why do birds have extensive air sacs in addition to lungs? (They enable unidirectional airflow and act as bellows to improve gas exchange and reduce body mass.)
  * What is the functional difference between the proventriculus and the gizzard? (Proventriculus secretes digestive juices; gizzard mechanically grinds food.)
  * Birds often lack a gallbladder. How, then, does bile reach the intestine? (Liver ducts drain directly into the duodenum.)
  * What evidence of high metabolic demand can you see in avian circulation? (Large, muscular left ventricle; separate pulmonary and systemic circuits; robust carotid and subclavian branches.)
  * How does the crop benefit granivorous birds like pigeons? (It stores and softens food before chemical and mechanical digestion.)
  * Which cranial nerve primarily innervates the heart, lungs, and foregut in birds? (The vagus.)