1.
Budgerigar
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The budgerigar /ˈbʌdʒərᵻɡɑːr/, also known as the common pet parakeet or shell parakeet and informally nicknamed the budgie, is a small, long-tailed, seed-eating parrot. Budgerigars are popular pets around the world due to their size, low cost. The origin of the name is unclear. The species was first recorded in 1805, and today is the third most popular pet in the world, after the domesticated dog, the budgerigar is closely related to the lories and the fig parrots. They are one of the species, a non-taxonomical term that refers to any of a number of small parrots with long, flat. In both captivity and the wild, budgerigars breed opportunistically and in pairs, the budgerigar has been thought to be the link between the genera Neophema and Pezoporus based on the barred plumage. However, recent phylogenetic studies using DNA sequences place the very close to the lories. Wild budgerigars average 18 cm long, weigh 30–40 grams, and display a green body colour. The forehead and face is yellow in adults but with stripes down to the cere in young individuals until they change into their adult plumage around three to four months of age. They display small, iridescent blue-violet cheek patches and a series of three black spots across each side of their throats, the two outermost throat spots are situated at the base of each cheek patch. The tail is cobalt, and outside tail feathers display central yellow flashes and their wings have greenish-black flight feathers and black coverts with yellow fringes along with central yellow flashes, which only become visible in flight or when the wings are outstretched. Bills are olive grey and legs blueish-grey, with zygodactyl toes, budgerigars in their natural habitat in Australia are noticeably smaller than those in captivity. This particular parrot species has bred in many other colours and shades in captivity, although they are mostly found in pet stores in blue, green. Like most parrot species, budgerigar plumage fluoresces under ultraviolet light and this phenomenon is possibly related to courtship and mate selection. The upper half of their beaks is much taller than the bottom half, the beak does not protrude much, due to the thick, fluffy feathers surrounding it, giving the appearance of a downward-pointing beak that lies flat against the face. The upper half acts as a long, smooth cover, while the bottom half is just about a half-sized cup-piece and these beaks allow the birds to eat plants, fruits, and vegetables. The colour of the cere differs between the sexes, being blue in males, pale brown to white or brown in females. Some female budgerigars develop brown cere only during breeding time, which returns to the normal colour
2.
Cockatiel
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The cockatiel, also known as the quarrion and the weiro, is a bird that is a member of the cockatoo family endemic to Australia. They are prized as pets and companion parrots throughout the world and are relatively easy to breed. As a caged bird, cockatiels are second in popularity only to the budgerigar, the cockatiel is the only member of the genus Nymphicus. It was previously considered a crested parrot or small cockatoo, however, more recent molecular studies have assigned it to its own subfamily and it is, therefore, now classified as the smallest of the Cacatuidae. Cockatiels are native to Australia, and favour the Australian wetlands, scrublands, originally described by Scottish writer and naturalist Robert Kerr in 1793 as Psittacus hollandicus, the cockatiel was moved to its own genus, Nymphicus, by Wagler in 1832. The specific name refers to New Holland, a historic name for Australia. This issue has now settled with molecular studies. A1984 study of protein allozymes signalled its closer relationship to cockatoos than to parrots, the unique, parakeet morphological feature is a consequence of the decrease in size and accompanying change of ecological niche. The cockatiels distinctive erectile crest expresses the emotional state. The crest is dramatically vertical when the cockatiel is startled or excited, gently oblique in its neutral or relaxed state, the crest is also held flat but protrudes outward in the back when the cockatiel is trying to appear alluring or flirtatious. In contrast to most cockatoos, the cockatiel has long tail feathers roughly making up half of its total length, at 30 to 33 cm, the cockatiel is the smallest of the cockatoos which are generally larger at between 30 and 60 cm. The normal grey or wild-type cockatiels plumage is grey with prominent white flashes on the outer edges of each wing. The face of the male is yellow or white, while the face of the female is grey or light grey. This orange colouration is generally vibrant in males, and often quite muted in females. Visual sexing is often possible with this variant of the bird, Cockatiels are relatively vocal birds, the calls of the male being more varied than that of the female. Cockatiels can also be taught to sing specific melodies, much like parrots, but not quite to that extent, Cockatiels can be taught to repeat words spoken by human owners. All wild cockatiel chicks and juveniles look female, and are virtually indistinguishable from the time of hatching until their first moulting, adult cockatiels are sexually dimorphic, though to a lesser degree than many other avian species. The grey feathers on his cheeks and crest are replaced by bright yellow feathers, while the cheek patch becomes brighter
3.
Animal husbandry
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Animal husbandry is the management and care of farm animals by human beings, in which genetic qualities and behavior, considered to be advantageous to humans, are further developed. The term can refer to the practice of breeding and raising livestock to promote desirable traits in animals for utility, sport, pleasure. Animal husbandry has been practiced for thousands of years since the first domestication of animals, selective breeding for desired traits was first established as a scientific practice by Robert Bakewell during the British Agricultural Revolution in the 18th century. One of his most important breeding programs was with sheep, using native stock, he was able to quickly select for large, yet fine-boned sheep, with long, lustrous wool. The Lincoln Longwool was improved by Bakewell and in turn the Lincoln was used to develop the subsequent breed, named the New Leicester and it was hornless and had a square, meaty body with straight top lines. These sheep were exported widely and have contributed to modern breeds. Under his influence, English farmers began to breed cattle for use primarily as beef for consumption -, long-horned heifers were crossed with the Westmoreland bull to eventually create the Dishley Longhorn. Over the following decades, farm animals increased dramatically in size, in 1700, the average weight of a bull sold for slaughter was 370 pounds. By 1786, that weight had more than doubled to 840 pounds, in more modern times herds are tended on horses, all-terrain vehicles, motorbikes, four-wheel drive vehicles, and helicopters, depending on the terrain and livestock concerned. Today, herd managers often oversee thousands of animals and many staff, farms, stations and ranches may employ breeders, herd health specialists, feeders, and milkers to help care for the animals. Techniques such as artificial insemination and embryo transfer are used today, not only as methods to guarantee that females breed regularly. This may be done by transplanting embryos from high-quality females into lower-quality surrogate mothers - freeing up the higher-quality mother to be reimpregnated and this practice vastly increases the number of offspring which may be produced by a small selection of the best quality parent animals. On one hand, this improves the ability of the animals to feed to meat, milk, or fiber more efficiently. On the other, it decreases genetic diversity, increasing the severity of disease outbreaks among other risks. The semi-natural, unfertilized pastures formed by traditional methods in Europe, were managed and maintained by the grazing and mowing of livestock. Animal agriculture is responsible for 20%-33% of all fresh water consumption in the world today, livestock or livestock feed occupies 1/3 of the earth’s ice-free land. Animal agriculture is the cause of species extinction, ocean dead zones, water pollution. Animal agriculture contributes to species extinction in many ways, the widespread use of pesticides, herbicides and chemical fertilizers used in the production of feed crops often interferes with the reproductive systems of animals and poison waterways
4.
Species
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In biology, a species is the basic unit of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is defined as the largest group of organisms in which two individuals can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. While this definition is often adequate, looked at more closely it is problematic, for example, with hybridisation, in a species complex of hundreds of similar microspecies, or in a ring species, the boundaries between closely related species become unclear. Other ways of defining species include similarity of DNA, morphology, all species are given a two-part name, a binomial. The first part of a binomial is the genus to which the species belongs, the second part is called the specific name or the specific epithet. For example, Boa constrictor is one of four species of the Boa genus, Species were seen from the time of Aristotle until the 18th century as fixed kinds that could be arranged in a hierarchy, the great chain of being. In the 19th century, biologists grasped that species could evolve given sufficient time, Charles Darwins 1859 book The Origin of Species explained how species could arise by natural selection. Genes can sometimes be exchanged between species by horizontal transfer, and species may become extinct for a variety of reasons. In his biology, Aristotle used the term γένος to mean a kind, such as a bird or fish, a kind was distinguished by its attributes, for instance, a bird has feathers, a beak, wings, a hard-shelled egg, and warm blood. A form was distinguished by being shared by all its members, Aristotle believed all kinds and forms to be distinct and unchanging. His approach remained influential until the Renaissance, when observers in the Early Modern period began to develop systems of organization for living things, they placed each kind of animal or plant into a context. Many of these early delineation schemes would now be considered whimsical, animals likewise that differ specifically preserve their distinct species permanently, one species never springs from the seed of another nor vice versa. In the 18th century, the Swedish scientist Carl Linnaeus classified organisms according to shared physical characteristics and he established the idea of a taxonomic hierarchy of classification based upon observable characteristics and intended to reflect natural relationships. At the time, however, it was widely believed that there was no organic connection between species, no matter how similar they appeared. However, whether or not it was supposed to be fixed, by the 19th century, naturalists understood that species could change form over time, and that the history of the planet provided enough time for major changes. Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, in his 1809 Zoological Philosophy, described the transmutation of species, proposing that a species could change over time, in 1859, Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace provided a compelling account of evolution and the formation of new species. Darwin argued that it was populations that evolved, not individuals and this required a new definition of species. Darwin concluded that species are what appear to be, ideas
5.
Parrot
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Parrots, also known as psittacines /ˈsɪtəsaɪnz/, are birds of the roughly 393 species in 92 genera that make up the order Psittaciformes, found in most tropical and subtropical regions. The order is subdivided into three superfamilies, the Psittacoidea, the Cacatuoidea, and the Strigopoidea, Parrots have a generally pantropical distribution with several species inhabiting temperate regions in the Southern Hemisphere, as well. The greatest diversity of parrots is in South America and Australasia, characteristic features of parrots include a strong, curved bill, an upright stance, strong legs, and clawed zygodactyl feet. Many parrots are vividly coloured, and some are multi-coloured, most parrots exhibit little or no sexual dimorphism in the visual spectrum. They form the most variably sized bird order in terms of length, the most important components of most parrots diets are seeds, nuts, fruit, buds, and other plant material. A few species sometimes eat animals and carrion, while the lories and lorikeets are specialised for feeding on floral nectar, almost all parrots nest in tree hollows, and lay white eggs from which hatch altricial young. Parrots, along with ravens, crows, jays, and magpies, are among the most intelligent birds, some parrots are intelligent and talk at the level of a four-to-five year old human. Measures taken to conserve the habitats of some high-profile charismatic species have protected many of the less charismatic species living in the same ecosystems. Psittaciform diversity in South America and Australasia suggests that the order may have evolved in Gondwana, molecular studies suggest that parrots evolved approximately 59 million years ago in Gondwana. The three major clades of Neotropical parrots originated about 50 Mya, likewise, the earliest parrots do not have the specialised crushing bills of modern species. If so, they probably had not evolved their morphological autapomorphies yet, the combined evidence supported the hypothesis of Psittaciformes being near passerines, i. e. the mostly land-living birds that emerged in close proximity to the K-Pg extinction. Europe is the origin of the first undeniable parrot fossils, which date from about 50 Mya, the climate there and then was tropical, consistent with the Paleocene-Eocene thermal maximum. Initially, a neoavian named Mopsitta tanta, uncovered in Denmarks Early Eocene Fur Formation and dated to 54 Mya, was assigned to the Psittaciformes, fossils assignable to Psittaciformes date from slightly later in the Eocene, starting around 50 Mya. Several fairly complete skeletons of birds have been found in England. The fossil record—mainly from Europe—consists of bones clearly recognisable as belonging to parrots of modern type, at this point, however, is found the first unambiguous parrot fossil, an upper jaw that is indistinguishable from that of modern cockatoos. The Psittaciformes comprise three lineages, Strigopoidea, Psittacoidea and Cacatuoidea. Colourful feathers with high levels of psittacofulvin resist the feather-degrading bacterium Bacillus licheniformis better than white ones, lorikeets were previously regarded as a third family, Loriidae, but are now considered a tribe within the subfamily Lorinae, family Cacatuoidea. The two other tribes in the subfamily are the closely related fig parrots and budgerigar, the order Psittaciformes consists of roughly 393 species belonging to 92 genera
6.
Canary Islands
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The Canary Islands, also known as the Canaries, are an archipelago and autonomous community of Spain located on the Atlantic Ocean,100 kilometres west of Morocco. The Canaries are among the outermost regions of the European Union proper and it is also one of the eight regions with special consideration of historical nationality recognized as such by the Spanish Government. The main islands are Tenerife, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, La Palma, La Gomera, the archipelago also includes a number of islands and islets, La Graciosa, Alegranza, Isla de Lobos, Montaña Clara, Roque del Oeste and Roque del Este. In ancient times, the chain was often referred to as the Fortunate Isles. The Canary Islands is the most southerly region of Spain and the largest and most populated archipelago of the Macaronesia region, the islands have a subtropical climate, with long hot summers and moderately warm winters. The precipitation levels and the level of maritime moderation varies depending on location and elevation, green areas as well as desert exist on the archipelago. Due to their location above the inversion layer, the high mountains of these islands are ideal for astronomical observation. For this reason, two professional observatories, Teide Observatory on the island of Tenerife and Roque de los Muchachos Observatory on the island of La Palma, have built on the islands. Las Palmas de Gran Canaria has been the largest city in the Canaries since 1768, between the 1833 territorial division of Spain and 1927 Santa Cruz de Tenerife was the sole capital of the Canary Islands. In 1927 a decree ordered that the capital of the Canary Islands be shared, the third largest city of the Canary Islands is San Cristóbal de La Laguna on Tenerife. This city is home to the Consejo Consultivo de Canarias. During the time of the Spanish Empire, the Canaries were the main stopover for Spanish galleons on their way to the Americas, who came south to catch the prevailing northeasterly trade winds. The name Islas Canarias is likely derived from the Latin name Canariae Insulae, meaning Islands of the Dogs, according to the historian Pliny the Elder, the Mauretanian king Juba II named the island Canaria because it contained vast multitudes of dogs of very large size. Another speculation is that the dogs were actually a species of monk seal, critically endangered. The dense population of seals may have been the characteristic that most struck the few ancient Romans who established contact with these islands by sea. Alternatively, it is said that the inhabitants of the island, Guanches, used to worship dogs, mummified them. The ancient Greeks also knew about a people, living far to the west, who are the dog-headed ones, who worshipped dogs on an island. Some hypothesize that the Canary Islands dog-worship and the ancient Egyptian cult of the god, Anubis are closely connected
7.
Madeira
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Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago situated in the north Atlantic Ocean, southwest of Portugal. Its total population was estimated in 2011 at 267,785, the capital of Madeira is Funchal, located on the main islands south coast. The archipelago is just under 400 kilometres north of Tenerife, Canary Islands, since 1976, the archipelago has been one of the two Autonomous regions of Portugal. It includes the islands of Madeira, Porto Santo, and the Desertas, the region has political and administrative autonomy through the Administrative Political Statue of the Autonomous Region of Madeira provided for in the Portuguese Constitution. Madeira was claimed by Portuguese sailors in the service of Prince Henry the Navigator in 1419, the archipelago is considered to be the first territorial discovery of the exploratory period of the Portuguese Age of Discovery, which extended from 1415 to 1542. Today, it is a popular resort, being visited every year by about one million tourists. The region is noted for its Madeira wine, gastronomy, historical and cultural value, its flora and fauna, landscapes which are classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and embroidery artisans. Its annual New Year celebrations feature the largest fireworks show in the world, Madeira is the second richest region of Portugal by GDP per capita, only surpassed by Lisbon. They are called the Isles of the Blessed, archeological evidence suggests that the islands may have been visited by the Vikings sometime between 900-1030. During the reign of King Edward III of England, lovers Robert Machim and they were driven off their course by a violent storm and their ship went aground along the coast of an island, that may have been Madeira. Later this legend was the basis of the naming of the city of Machico, knowledge of some Atlantic islands, such as Madeira, existed before their formal discovery and settlement, as the islands were shown on maps as early as 1339. The following year, an expedition, under the captaincy of Zarco, Vaz Teixeira. Subsequently, the new settlers observed a black cloud suspended to the southwest. Their investigation revealed it to be the island they called Madeira. The first Portuguese settlers began colonizing the islands around 1420 or 1425, grain production began to fall and the ensuing crisis forced Henry the Navigator to order other commercial crops to be planted so that the islands could be profitable. The planting of sugarcane, and later Sicilian sugar beet, allowed the introduction of the salt into Europe. These specialised plants, and their associated industrial technology, created one of the major revolutions on the islands, the expansion of sugar plantations in Madeira began in 1455, using advisers from Sicily and financed by Genoese capital. The accessibility of Madeira attracted Genoese and Flemish traders, who were keen to bypass Venetian monopolies, by 1480 Antwerp had some seventy ships engaged in the Madeira sugar trade, with the refining and distribution concentrated in Antwerp
8.
Azores
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Its main industries are agriculture, dairy farming, livestock, fishing, and tourism, which is becoming the major service activity in the region. In addition, the government of the Azores employs a large percentage of the population directly or indirectly in the service, the main settlement of the Azores is Ponta Delgada. There are nine major Azorean islands and a cluster, in three main groups. These are Flores and Corvo, to the west, Graciosa, Terceira, São Jorge, Pico, and Faial in the centre, and São Miguel, Santa Maria, and they extend for more than 600 km and lie in a northwest-southeast direction. All the islands have volcanic origins, although some, such as Santa Maria, have had no recorded activity since the islands were settled, mount Pico, on the island of Pico, is the highest point in Portugal, at 2,351 m. The Azores are actually some of the tallest mountains on the planet, measured from their base at the bottom of the ocean to their peaks, which thrust high above the surface of the Atlantic. The climate of the Azores is very mild for such a location, being influenced by its distance to continents. Due to the influence, temperatures remain mild year-round. Daytime temperatures normally fluctuate between 16 °C and 25 °C depending on season, temperatures above 30 °C or below 3 °C are unknown in the major population centres. It is also generally wet and cloudy, the culture, dialect, cuisine, and traditions of the Azorean islands vary considerably, because these once-uninhabited and remote islands were settled sporadically over a span of two centuries. However, these kinds of structures have always used in the Azores to store cereals. Detailed examination and dating to authenticate the validity of these speculations is lacking and it is unclear whether these structures are natural or man-made and whether they predate the 15th-century Portuguese colonization of the Azores. Solid confirmation of a human presence in the archipelago has not yet been published. The islands were known in the century and parts of them appear in the Atlas Catalan. In 1427, a captain sailing for Henry the Navigator, possibly Gonçalo Velho, rediscovered the Azores, but this is not certain. In Thomas Ashes 1813 work, A History of the Azores, the author identified a Fleming, Joshua Vander Berg of Bruges and he stated that the Portuguese explored the area and claimed it for Portugal. Other stories note the discovery of the first islands by sailors in the service of Henry the Navigator, although there are few documents to support the claims. Although it is said that the archipelago received its name from the goshawk
9.
Companion parrot
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A companion parrot is a parrot kept as a pet that interacts abundantly with its human counterpart. Generally, most species of parrot can make excellent companions, some species of lories and lorikeets are kept as pets but are quite messy, and often more popular as aviary birds. Hanging parrots and fig parrots are kept as aviary birds. Some species as pygmy parrots and kakapos, night parrots, however, many parrot species are still common, some abundant parrot species may still be legally killed as crop pests in their native countries. Endangered parrot species are suited to conservation breeding programs than as companions. Companion parrots also need to be fed a diet that includes vegetables and fruits. The larger parrots can be expensive to care for, messy, destructive, and loud, like dogs, parrots require some amount of basic training and proper early socialization to mature into good companions. Their intelligence means parrots learn new behaviors — both good and bad — easily and this is especially true for macaws and other species with dramatic, beautiful colouring, as well as cockatoos due to their intensely affectionate demeanor. These traits unfortunately make them tempting impulse purchases, leading to hundreds of macaws, in more recent years, pellets or formulated diets have become very popular, especially in the US. They offer an advantage over a seed-based diet in that a parrot cannot pick out, many pellets contain artificial food dyes and preservatives that may be harmful, however there are no-color-added options available on the market. Most pellets contain soy, which is not a part of a natural diet, however. Avian veterinarians and nutritionists agree the pelleted and formulated diets are the best base diet for pet birds, although pellets may be advertised as a complete diet, there are dozens of species of parrots commonly kept as pets, all with varying nutritional needs. There are still many birds which develop problems such as toxicity, fatty liver disease or gout. A common mistake made by owners feeding pellets is over-supplementing them with fresh food, as a pellet is, essentially, a supplemented grain, supplementing them even more dilutes the diet, making the pellets less efficient and the diet unbalanced. The best diet for a bird should be determined by an avian veterinarian, parrots can be very rewarding pets to the right owners, due to their intelligence and desire to interact with people. Many parrots are very affectionate, even cuddly with trusted people, some species have a tendency to bond to one or two people, and dislike strangers, unless they are regularly and consistently handled by different people. Properly socialized parrots can be friendly, outgoing and confident companions, most pet parrots take readily to trick training. Trick training can help to redirect a birds energy and prevent or correct many behavior problems
10.
Bird
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Birds, a subgroup of Reptiles, are the last living examples of Dinosaurs. Birds live worldwide and range in size from the 5 cm bee hummingbird to the 2.75 m ostrich. They rank as the class of tetrapods with the most living species, at ten thousand. Birds are the closest living relatives of crocodilians, the fossil record indicates that birds evolved from feathered ancestors within the theropod group of saurischian dinosaurs. True birds first appeared during the Cretaceous period, around 100 million years ago, Birds, especially those in the southern continents, survived this event and then migrated to other parts of the world while diversifying during periods of global cooling. Primitive bird-like dinosaurs that lie outside class Aves proper, in the broader group Avialae, have been found dating back to the mid-Jurassic period, around 170 million years ago. Birds have wings which are more or less developed depending on the species, the digestive and respiratory systems of birds are also uniquely adapted for flight. Some bird species of aquatic environments, particularly seabirds and some waterbirds, have evolved for swimming. Many species annually migrate great distances, Birds are social, communicating with visual signals, calls, and bird songs, and participating in such social behaviours as cooperative breeding and hunting, flocking, and mobbing of predators. The vast majority of species are socially monogamous, usually for one breeding season at a time, sometimes for years. Other species have breeding systems that are polygynous or, rarely, Birds produce offspring by laying eggs which are fertilised through sexual reproduction. They are usually laid in a nest and incubated by the parents, most birds have an extended period of parental care after hatching. Some birds, such as hens, lay eggs even when not fertilised, songbirds, parrots, and other species are popular as pets. Guano is harvested for use as a fertiliser, Birds prominently figure throughout human culture. About 120–130 species have become extinct due to human activity since the 17th century, human activity threatens about 1,200 bird species with extinction, though efforts are underway to protect them. Recreational birdwatching is an important part of the ecotourism industry, the first classification of birds was developed by Francis Willughby and John Ray in their 1676 volume Ornithologiae. Carl Linnaeus modified that work in 1758 to devise the taxonomic classification system currently in use, Birds are categorised as the biological class Aves in Linnaean taxonomy. Phylogenetic taxonomy places Aves in the dinosaur clade Theropoda, Aves and a sister group, the clade Crocodilia, contain the only living representatives of the reptile clade Archosauria
11.
Anatomy
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Anatomy is the branch of biology concerned with the study of the structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is inherently tied to embryology, comparative anatomy, evolutionary biology, Human anatomy is one of the basic essential sciences of medicine. The discipline of anatomy is divided into macroscopic and microscopic anatomy, macroscopic anatomy, or gross anatomy, is the examination of an animals body parts using unaided eyesight. Gross anatomy also includes the branch of superficial anatomy, microscopic anatomy involves the use of optical instruments in the study of the tissues of various structures, known as histology, and also in the study of cells. The history of anatomy is characterized by an understanding of the functions of the organs. Anatomy and physiology, which study the structure and function of organisms and their parts, make a pair of related disciplines. Derived from the Greek ἀνατομή anatomē dissection, anatomy is the study of the structure of organisms including their systems, organs. It includes the appearance and position of the parts, the materials from which they are composed, their locations. Anatomy is quite distinct from physiology and biochemistry, which deal respectively with the functions of those parts, the discipline of anatomy can be subdivided into a number of branches including gross or macroscopic anatomy and microscopic anatomy. Gross anatomy is the study of large enough to be seen with the naked eye, and also includes superficial anatomy or surface anatomy. Microscopic anatomy is the study of structures on a scale, including histology. Anatomy can be studied using both invasive and non-invasive methods with the goal of obtaining information about the structure and organization of organs, angiography using X-rays or magnetic resonance angiography are methods to visualize blood vessels. The term anatomy is commonly taken to refer to human anatomy, however, substantially the same structures and tissues are found throughout the rest of the animal kingdom and the term also includes the anatomy of other animals. The term zootomy is also used to specifically refer to animals. The structure and tissues of plants are of a dissimilar nature, the kingdom Animalia or metazoa, contains multicellular organisms that are heterotrophic and motile. Most animals have bodies differentiated into separate tissues and these animals are known as eumetazoans. They have a digestive chamber, with one or two openings, the gametes are produced in multicellular sex organs, and the zygotes include a blastula stage in their embryonic development. Metazoans do not include the sponges, which have undifferentiated cells, unlike plant cells, animal cells have neither a cell wall nor chloroplasts
12.
Bird anatomy
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Bird anatomy, or the physiological structure of birds bodies, shows many unique adaptations, mostly aiding flight. The development of a beak has led to evolution of a specially adapted digestive system and these anatomical specializations have earned birds their own class in the vertebrate phylum. The bird skeleton is highly adapted for flight and it is extremely lightweight but strong enough to withstand the stresses of taking off, flying, and landing. One key adaptation is the fusing of bones into single ossifications, because of this, birds usually have a smaller number of bones than other terrestrial vertebrates. Birds also lack teeth or even a true jaw, instead having a beak, the beaks of many baby birds have a projection called an egg tooth, which facilitates their exit from the amniotic egg, and that falls off once it has done its job. Birds have many bones that are hollow with criss-crossing struts or trusses for structural strength, the number of hollow bones varies among species, though large gliding and soaring birds tend to have the most. Respiratory air sacs often form air pockets within the bones of the birds skeleton. The bones of diving birds are often less hollow than those of non-diving species, loons and puffins are without pneumatized bones entirely. Flightless birds, such as ostriches and emus, demonstrate osseous pneumaticity, possessing pneumatized femurs and, in the case of the emu, Birds also have more cervical vertebrae than many other animals, most have a highly flexible neck consisting of 13-25 vertebrae. Birds are the vertebrates to have fused clavicles or a keeled sternum or breastbone. The keel of the sternum serves as an attachment site for the used for flight or, similarly, for swimming. Again, flightless birds, such as ostriches, which do not have developed pectoral muscles. Swimming birds have a sternum, while walking birds have a long or high sternum and flying birds have a sternum width. Birds have uncinate processes on the ribs and these are hooked extensions of bone which help to strengthen the rib cage by overlapping with the rib behind them. This feature is found in the tuatara. They also have a greatly elongate tetradiate pelvis, similar to some reptiles, the hind limb has an intra-tarsal joint found also in some reptiles. There is extensive fusion of the vertebrae as well as fusion with the pectoral girdle. They have a skull, as in reptiles, with a pre-lachrymal fossa
