Bird and Mammal Biology

These flashcards cover key concepts from the lecture notes on Bird and Mammal Biology, focusing on adaptations, anatomical features, physiological functions, and behaviors.

Adaptations for Flight

Features that enable birds to fly, including endothermy, feathers, acute senses, lightweight bones.

Plumage

The feathers covering a bird, serving functions like insulation, flight surface, and mating displays.

Molting

The process of shedding feathers to allow for new growth in birds.

Pygostyle

The fused caudal vertebrae at the posterior portion of birds, providing surface area for tail feathers attachment.

Synsacrum

A fused structure consisting of lower thoracic, lumbar, and caudal vertebrae in birds, forming part of the pelvic girdle.

Pectoralis

The largest flight muscle in birds, responsible for pulling the wing down.

Supracoracoideus

A smaller flight muscle that lifts the wing and is connected to the dorsal side of the humerus.

Endothermy

The ability to maintain a constant body temperature through metabolic heat, crucial for high metabolism in birds.

Alimentary canal

The digestive tract of birds, including specialized structures like the crop and cloaca.

4-chambered heart

A heart structure consisting of two atria and two ventricles, allowing efficient separation of oxygenated and deoxygenated blood.

Countercurrent heat exchange

A physiological arrangement in some aquatic birds where warm and cool blood flow in opposite directions, maintaining core temperature.

Cloaca

A common opening for the excretory, reproductive, and digestive systems in birds.

Viviparous

Referring to animals that give live birth, as seen in most mammals.

Monotremes

Egg-laying mammals like the platypus and echidnas.

Ruminant

A type of herbivore with a specialized stomach structure that allows for fermentation of cellulose.

Olfaction

The sense of smell, which is poorly developed in birds compared to other vertebrates.

Behavioral Ecology

The study of the interactions between animal behavior and their ecological environment.

Innate Behavior

Behaviors that are genetically programmed and typically consistent across individuals.

Sociobiology

The study of social behaviors in animals and their evolutionary significance.

Territory

An area defended by an animal or group of animals against intruders.