Orno Week 1 Avian Morphology

Front 1

Long bill

Back 1

longer than the head

heron

Front 2

Short bill

Back 2

shorter than the head

finch

Front 3

Spatulate bill

Back 3

Widened or depressed toward the tip

Shoveler

Front 4

Conical bill

Back 4

Shape of a cone; wide then to a point - for seed eaters

Cardinal

Front 5

Bent bill

Back 5

Deflected at an angle

Flamingo

Front 6

Hooked tip

Back 6

The upper mandible is longer than the lower, and its tip is bent over the lower; cutting edge

Hawk

Front 7

Crossed tip

Back 7

The tips of the mandibles cross each other; eats spruce and pine cones

Crossbill

Front 8

Acute tip

Back 8

The bill tapers to a sharp point

Warbler

Front 9

Chisel-like tip

Back 9

The tip of the bill is beveled

Woodpecker

Front 10

Nail tip

Back 10

Flattened egg tooth; precocious young to get out of egg

Duck

Front 11

Straight commissure

Back 11

The line along which the mandibles close is in line with the axis of the head

Heron

Front 12

Decurved commissure

Back 12

The bill curves downward

Curlew, creeper

Front 13

Recurved commissure

Back 13

The bill curves upward

Avocet, godwit

Front 14

Toothed tomia

Back 14

Has a "tooth" near the base of the mandible

Falcon

Front 15

Notched tomia

Back 15

Slight nick near the tip of the tomia of one or both mandibles; extra surface area

Robin

Front 16

Lamellate tomia

Back 16

Series of transverse tooth-like ridges/grooves

Dabbling duck

Front 17

Serrate tomia

Back 17

Saw-like tomia

Merganser

Front 18

Terete

Back 18

Circular, symmetrical

Songbird

Front 19

Depressed cross section

Back 19

Wider than high

Duck

Front 20

Compressed cross section

Back 20

Higher than wide

Loon

Front 21

Tubular nostrils

Back 21

At ends of short prolongations

Shearwater

Front 22

Linear nostrils

Back 22

Opening is a linear shape

Gull

Front 23

Oval nostrils

Back 23

Opening is an oval shape

Cooper's hawk

Front 24

Circular nostrils

Back 24

Opening is a circular shape

Falcon

Front 25

Feathered tarsal covering

Back 25

Feather covering

Owl

Front 26

Reticulate tarsal covering

Back 26

Small irregularly arranged scales

Goose, parrot

Front 27

Scutellate tarsal covering

Back 27

Rectangular scales in overlapping rows

Turkey, sparrow

Front 28

Booted tarsal covering

Back 28

Long, continuous platelike covering, no scales; like lego blocks

Thrush

Front 29

Anisodactyl

Back 29

Robin

Front 30

Zygodactyl

Back 30

Woodpecker

Front 31

Heterodactyl

Back 31

Trogon

Front 32

Syndactyl

Back 32

Kingfisher

Front 33

Pamprodactyl

Back 33

Swift

Front 34

Hallux elevated

Back 34

Hallux elevated above other toes

Cranes

Front 35

Hallux incumbent

Back 35

Hallux on the same level as other toes

Pigeons, doves

Front 36

Palmate

Back 36

Paddles for swimming

Duck

Front 37

Semipalmate

Back 37

Little webbing

Sandpipers

Front 38

Totipalmate

Back 38

Totally webbed

Cormorant

Front 39

Lobate

Back 39

A little webbing

Grebes

Front 40

Fringed

Back 40

Fringes on toes; gives friction

Ruffed grouse (winter plumage)

Front 41

Acute toe nails

Back 41

Extremely curved and sharp

Woodpecker

Front 42

Lengthened toe nails

Back 42

Long, straight, and sharp-pointed

Horned lark

Front 43

Pectinate toe nails

Back 43

Serrated edges on the third toe

Herons

Front 44

Flattened toe nails

Back 44

Flat and broad

Grebes

Front 45

Obtuse toe nails

Back 45

Not very curved, have blunt points

Grouse

Front 46

Pointed tail

Back 46

Middle rectrices are much longer than others

Pheasant

Front 47

Square tail

Back 47

Rectrices are all the same length

Horned lark

Front 48

Emarginate tail

Back 48

Rectrices increase in length successively from middle to outermost pair in slight gradation

Tree swallow

Front 49

Forked tail

Back 49

Rectrices increase in length successively from middle to outermost pair in abrupt gradations

Barn swallow

Front 50

Rounded tail

Back 50

Rectrices shorten successively from the inside to outside in slight gradations

Blue jay

Front 51

Graduated tail

Back 51

Rectrices shorten successively from the inside to the outside in abrupt gradations

Cuckoo

Front 52

Lores

Back 52

Front 53

Malar region

Back 53

Front 54

Superciliary

Back 54

Front 55

Remiges

Back 55

Flight feathers