Bird Anatomy | ClipArt ETC

The Bird Anatomy ClipArt gallery offers 411 illustrations of skeleton diagrams, arteries, digestive system, eggs, feathers, and both internal and external diagrams.

Eurasian Sparrowhawk Muscles

"Muscles of a bird (accipiter nisus), after Carus, Tab. Anat. Comp., 1828, pl. 4. a, pharynx; b, trachea;…

The sternum of a bird. Label: a, lateral aspect; b, inferior aspect; r, rostrum; c.p, costal process; pl.o, pleurosteon; c, carina; m.x, middle xiphoid process.

Sternum of a Bird

The sternum of a bird. Label: a, lateral aspect; b, inferior aspect; r, rostrum; c.p, costal process;…

"Typical passerine sternum, pectoral arches, and sternal ends of ribs; from the robin, Turdus migratorius, nat. size; Dr. R.W. Shufeldt, U.S.A. Sternum single-notched, with prominent costal processes and forked manubrium; five ribs reaching sternum, one rib "floating"" Elliot Coues, 1884

Sternum of a Robin

"Typical passerine sternum, pectoral arches, and sternal ends of ribs; from the robin, Turdus migratorius,…

""Views of sternum and pectoral arch of the ptarmigan, Lagapus albus, reduced. Lateral view, with the bones upside down. a, sternum or breast-bone showing two long slender lateral processes; b, ends of sternal ribs; c, ends of humerous, or upper arm-bone, near the shoulder-joint; d, scapula, or shoulder-blade; e, coracoid; f, merry-thought, or furculum." Elliot Coues, 1884

Willow Grouse Sternum

""Views of sternum and pectoral arch of the ptarmigan, Lagapus albus, reduced. Lateral view, with the…

"Views of sternum and pectoral arch of the ptarmigan, Lagapus albus, reduced; viewed from below. a, sternum or breast-bone showing two long slender lateral processes; b, ends of sternal ribs; c, ends of humerous, or upper arm-bone, near the shoulder-joint; d, scapula, or shoulder-blade; e, coracoid; f, merry-thought, or furculum." Elliot Coues, 1884

Willow Grouse Sternum

"Views of sternum and pectoral arch of the ptarmigan, Lagapus albus, reduced; viewed from below. a,…

The head and leg of the stork, a bird in the Ciconiidae family of storks, herons, and egrets.

Stork Head and Leg

The head and leg of the stork, a bird in the Ciconiidae family of storks, herons, and egrets.

"Fig 181 - Generic details of Hirundo horreorum(Barn Swallow)Deep lustrous steel-blue; forehead and entire under parts rufous, generally deepest on the forehead and throat; an imperfect steel-blue collar. Wings and tail blackish, with steel-blue or somewhat greenish gloss; the lateral pair of tail-feathers much lengthened and filiform at the end, all but central pair with white spot." Elliot Coues, 1884

Barn Swallow Details

"Fig 181 - Generic details of Hirundo horreorum(Barn Swallow) Deep lustrous steel-blue; forehead and…

"The external air penetrates into every part of their body by the respiratory tubes, which ramify the whole cellular tissue. Wings alone would fail to support the bird."

Skeleton of the Swan

"The external air penetrates into every part of their body by the respiratory tubes, which ramify the…

"Swan, in the act of swimming, the right foot being fully expanded and about to give the effective stroke, which is delivered outwards, downwards and backwards, as represented at r of fig. 50; the left foot being closed, and about to make the return stroke, as shown at s of fig. 50. In rapid swimming, the swan flexes its legs simultaneously and somewhat slowly; it then vigorously extends them."—Pettigrew, 1874

Swimming Swan

"Swan, in the act of swimming, the right foot being fully expanded and about to give the effective stroke,…

"Chaetura pelasgica. Chimney Swift. Chimney "Swallow". Sooty-brown, with a faint greenish gloss above; below paler, becoming gray on the throat; wings black; a velvety black space about eyes." Elliot Coues, 1884

Chimney Swift Head and Feather

"Chaetura pelasgica. Chimney Swift. Chimney "Swallow". Sooty-brown, with a faint greenish gloss above;…

"Hirundo horreorum. Barn Swallow. Tail deeply fornicate, nearly or about as long as the wings; lateral feather linear-attenuat, about twice as long as the middle feather." Elliot Coues, 1884

Barn Swallow Tail

"Hirundo horreorum. Barn Swallow. Tail deeply fornicate, nearly or about as long as the wings; lateral…

"Fig 178 - the dentirostral bill of a Tanager (Pyranga hepatica)" Elliot Coues, 1884

The Dentirostral Bill of a Tanager

"Fig 178 - the dentirostral bill of a Tanager (Pyranga hepatica)" Elliot Coues, 1884

An illustration of the front left tarsus of a penguin. "a, articular facet for inner condyle of tibia; b, articular facet for outer condyle; c, c, two foramina, showing incomplete fusion of three metatarsals; d, point of attachment of accessory metatarsal; 2, 3, 4, articular facets for second, third, and fourth toes." -Century, 1889

Front Left Tarsus of a Penguin

An illustration of the front left tarsus of a penguin. "a, articular facet for inner condyle of tibia;…

"Booted laminiplanter tarsus of a Robin" Elliot Coues, 1884

Booted Laminiplanter Tarsus of a Robin

"Booted laminiplanter tarsus of a Robin" Elliot Coues, 1884

Feathered Tarsus of a Grouse

"Feathered tarsus of a Grouse, Cupidonia cupido" Elliot Coues, 1884

"Fig 38 a, Reticulate tarsus of a Plover. b, Scutellate and reticulate tarsus of a pigeon." Elliot Coues, 1884

Reticulate Tarsus of a Plover

"Fig 38 a, Reticulate tarsus of a Plover. b, Scutellate and reticulate tarsus of a pigeon." Elliot Coues,…

"Sterna fuliginosa. Sooty Tern. feet stout; toes short; with much incised webs; tibia bare .70; tarsus 1.00; middle toe and claw 1.20; outer do. 1.05; inner do. .75; hind do. .30. "Elliot Coues, 1884

Sooty Tern Foot

"Sterna fuliginosa. Sooty Tern. feet stout; toes short; with much incised webs; tibia bare .70; tarsus…

"Sterna forsteri. Forster's Tern. Tail 5.00 - 8.00, forked 2.50-5.00." Elliot Coues, 1884

Tail of Forster's Tern

"Sterna forsteri. Forster's Tern. Tail 5.00 - 8.00, forked 2.50-5.00." Elliot Coues, 1884

"...one or both webs may be so deeply incised, that is, cut away, that the palmation is practically reduced to semipalmation, as in terns of the genus Hydrochelidon." Elliot Coues, 1884

Incised Webbed Foot of a Tern

"...one or both webs may be so deeply incised, that is, cut away, that the palmation is practically…

"In the palmate or ordinary webbed foot, all the front toes are united by ample webs." Elliot Coues, 1884

Webbed Foot of a Tern

"In the palmate or ordinary webbed foot, all the front toes are united by ample webs." Elliot Coues,…

"Generic details of a Myiadestes townsendi (Townsend's Flycatching Thrush); bill and foot nat. size, wing and tail 3/4ths."

Generic Details of a Thrush

"Generic details of a Myiadestes townsendi (Townsend's Flycatching Thrush); bill and foot nat. size,…

"Dromaeognathous skull of a tinamou (Tinamus robustus); copies by Shufeldt from Huxley. Letters as before; Mxp, maxillo-palatine. The tinamous, Dromaeognathae "have a completely struthious palate"; vomer very broad, uniting in front with broad maxillo-palatine plates as in Dromaeus; behind articulating with posterior ends of palatines and anterior ends of pterygoids, both of which are thus prevented, as in all Ratitae, from any extensive connection with the rostrum; basipterygoid processes springing from body of sphenoid, not from its rostrum, articulating with pterygoids very near the posterior or outer ends of the latter; head of quadrate with a single articular facet, as in Ratitae." Elliot Coues, 1884

The Skull of a Tinamou

"Dromaeognathous skull of a tinamou (Tinamus robustus); copies by Shufeldt from Huxley. Letters as before;…

"Anthus Ludovicianus. Louisiana Pipit. American Titlark. Brown Lark. Wagtail. Bill blackish, pale at base below; feet brown. bill .50; tarsus .90." Elliot Coues, 1884

American Titlark Claw

"Anthus Ludovicianus. Louisiana Pipit. American Titlark. Brown Lark. Wagtail. Bill blackish, pale at…

Bill of Toucan

"The beak or bill of birds is composed of two bony pieces, called mandibles, surrounded by a horny substance,…

"a, an inch of trachea, contracted to the utmost, the rings looking like alternating half-rings; b, the same, stretched to two inches, the rings evidently complete, with intervening membrane." Elliot Coues, 1884

Bird Trachea

"a, an inch of trachea, contracted to the utmost, the rings looking like alternating half-rings; b,…

"Bifurcation of trachea; aba, last entire tracheal ring." Elliot Coues, 1884

The Trachea of a Rook

"Bifurcation of trachea; aba, last entire tracheal ring." Elliot Coues, 1884

"Last entire tracheal ring, viewed from below, crossed by the pessulus." Elliot Coues, 1884

The Trachea of a Rook

"Last entire tracheal ring, viewed from below, crossed by the pessulus." Elliot Coues, 1884

The Trachea of a Rook

"Bifurcation of trachea, and bronchi, viewed from below; a, pessulus, the bolt-bar, or "bone of divarication";…

The Tracheal Rings of a Bird

"1, 2, left, two tracheal rings, separate. b; 1, 2, right hand, the same put together." Elliot Coues,…

This illustration shows the three-toed tracks of birds and reptiles.

Tracks

This illustration shows the three-toed tracks of birds and reptiles.

Red Shafted Woodpecker Ulna

"Fig. 31. - Ulna of Colaptes mexicanus, showing points of attachment of the secondaries. (Dr. R. W.…

"The first change in the parent-cell is that by which it becomes broken up into a mass of cells, each of which is just like itself. This process is called segmentation of the vitellus; each one of the numerous resulting cells is called a cleavage-cell. The nucleus of the parent-cell divides into two; each attracts its half of the yelk; the halves furrow apart and there are now two cleavage cells in place of the one parent-cell a furrow at right angles to the first, and redivision of the nuclei; results in four cleavage-cells. Radiating furrows intermediate to the first two bisect the four cells, and would render eight cells, were not these simultaneously doubled by a circular furrow which cleaves each, with the result of sixteen cleavage-cells. So the subdivision goes on until the parent-cell becomes a mass of cells. This particular kind of cleavage, by radiating and concentric furrowing, is called discoidal, and the resulting heap of little cells assumes the figure of a thin, flat, circular disc. Segmentation of the vitellus, in whatever manner it may go on, results in a mulberry-like mass of cleavage-cells; and the original cytula has become what is called a morula. This process is shown closely here." Elliot Coues, 1884

The Segmentation of the Vitellus

"The first change in the parent-cell is that by which it becomes broken up into a mass of cells, each…

"The lower larynx constitutes the organ of song."

Vocal Apparatus Contracted and Distended

"The lower larynx constitutes the organ of song."

"Skeleton of Egyptian Vulture. (Neophron percnopterus), to show bones of bird. a, post-orbital process; b, lower jaw; c, cervical vertebra; co, coracoid bone; d, humerus; e, radius; f, ulna; g, metacarpus; h, second phalanx of chief digit of wing; h, phalanges of lower digit; h'', first phalanx of chief digit; i, clavicle; k, sternum; l, pelvis; m, coccyx; n, femur; o, tibia; p, tarso-metatarsus; q, phalanges of foot." — Winston's Encyclopedia, 1919

Vulture Skeleton

"Skeleton of Egyptian Vulture. (Neophron percnopterus), to show bones of bird. a, post-orbital process;…

The head, foot, and tail of a Stone Chat Wheat-Ear

Stone Chat Wheatear

The head, foot, and tail of a Stone Chat Wheat-Ear

"Skull of a Wild Duck (Anus boscas), from the side. ag, Angular; als, alisphenoid; ar, articular; bt, basitemporal; d, dentaryl en, external nostrils, e.o, exoccipital; eth, ethmoid; fr, frontal; j, jugal; lc, lacrymal; mx, maxilla; mx.p, maxillopalatine process; n, nasal, parietal; pg, pterygoid; pl, palatine; ps, presphenoid; px, premaxilla; q, quadrate; q.j, quadratojugal; s.ag, supra-angular; s.o, supraoccipital; sq, squamosal; ty, tympanic cavity; v, vomer; II, foramen for optic nerve; V, for trigeminal." (From Wiedersheim.)" A. H. Evans, 1900

Diagram of the Skull of a Wild Duck

"Skull of a Wild Duck (Anus boscas), from the side. ag, Angular; als, alisphenoid; ar, articular; bt,…

The semipalmate (half-webbed) foot of the willet (Tringa semipalmata).

Willet Foot

The semipalmate (half-webbed) foot of the willet (Tringa semipalmata).

The semipalmated (half-webbed) bases of toes on the foot of a Willet. "... basal webs generally run out to the end of the first, or along part of the second, phalanx of the toes; usually farther between the outer and middle that between the middle and inner toes." Elliot Coues, 1884

Half-Webbed Foot of a Willet

The semipalmated (half-webbed) bases of toes on the foot of a Willet. "... basal webs generally run…

An illustration of the wing of a bird.

Wing of a Bird

An illustration of the wing of a bird.

A typical bird wing.

Bird Wing

A typical bird wing.

Red-Legged Partridge Wing

An illustration of the right wing of the red-legged partridge.

Red-Legged Partridge Wing

An illustration of the right wing of the red-legged partridge.

"Fig. 45.- Zygodactyle foot of a woodpecker, Hylotomus pileatus. The zygodactyle or yoke-toed modification has been sufficiently noted in (fig. 45). It was formerly made much of, as a scansorial or climbing type of foot, and an absurd "order" of birds has been called Scansores." Elliot Coues, 1884

Zygodactyle Foot of a Woodpecker

"Fig. 45.- Zygodactyle foot of a woodpecker, Hylotomus pileatus. The zygodactyle or yoke-toed modification…

Woodpecker Skull

The skull of a woodpecker.

An illustration of a woodpecker's skull.

Woodpecker Skull

An illustration of a woodpecker's skull.

Woodpecker Skull

"Saurognathous skull of woodpecker (Colaptes auratus). v, v, the posterior parts of the abortive vomer;…

"Saurognathous skull of a nesting Picus minor. x4 diameters, after Parker. Px premaxillary: dpx, its dentary process; ppx, palatal process; sn, septo-nasal; pa, palatine; pmx, peculiar palatal plate of maxillary of a woodpecker; nf, nasal turbinal; mx, maxillary; ipa, interpalatal spur of palatine bone; mxp, rudimentary maxillo-palatine, scarcely reaching palatine; smx, septo-maxillary, in several pieces; v, right vomer, its fellow opposite; pe, lower border of perpendicular plate of ethmoid, between vomers; epa, ethmoidal (inner) plate of palatine; mpa, medio-palatine; pg pterygoid; i, foramen for internal carotid; 8 for vagus nerve; 9, for hypo-glossal nerve." Elliot Coues, 1884

Woodpecker Skull

"Saurognathous skull of a nesting Picus minor. x4 diameters, after Parker. Px premaxillary: dpx, its…

Top View of a Woodpecker Skull

"Top view of skull of Cloaptes, (flickers) showing thyrohyals running along the skull and into right…

This illustration shows the special development of tongues of woodpeckers; a, skull of flicker, showing root of tongue extending to tip of bill; b, head of hairy woodpecker, showing root of tongue curving around eye.

Woodpecker Tongue

This illustration shows the special development of tongues of woodpeckers; a, skull of flicker, showing…

Woodpecker Tongue

An illustration of a woodpecker's tongue. The long sticky tongues, which possess bristles, aid these…

"Third cervical vertebra of Woodpecker (Picus viridis). (Viewed anteriorly.) Ft, vertebrarterial foramen; Ob, upper arch ; Pa, articular process; Psi, haemal spine ; Pt, Pt, the two bars of the transverse process, shewn on one side ancylosed with the cervical rib (R); Sa articular surface of centrum. (From Wieersheim.) A. H. Evans, 1900

The Diagram of a Third Cervical Vertebra of a Woodpecker

"Third cervical vertebra of Woodpecker (Picus viridis). (Viewed anteriorly.) Ft, vertebrarterial foramen;…