Avian Digestive Physiology

Question 1

The ______ (organ) of a bird is very short

Answer 1

large intestine

Question 2

What is the oropharynx?

Answer 2

combined cavity of the mouth and pharynx extending from beak to esophagus

Question 3

How does a bird use its beak to drink water?

Answer 3

birds scoop water and lift beak
water goes down by gravity

Question 4

What are the parts of the oropharynx in birds?

Answer 4

beak
laryngeal mound
taste buds throughout

Question 5

Define laryngeal mound

Answer 5

caudal to base of tongue with median slit = glottis

Question 6

Do birds have an epiglottis?

Answer 6

NO

Question 7

Do birds have taste buds?

Answer 7

yes, in the oropharynx

Question 8

The composition of birds saliva is mostly [water/mucus]

Answer 8

mucus, with some amylase

Question 9

The crop is near the ______

Answer 9

thoracic inlet

Question 10

The pre-crop is near the ______ region

Answer 10

cervical

Question 11

What is the purpose of the crop?

Answer 11

to store food when rapidly eating, especially when the gizzard is full

Question 12

The crop has a small amount of ______

Answer 12

fermentation

Question 13

The crop is important for which types of birds?

Answer 13

birds that ARE prey

Question 14

What are the parts of the avian stomach?

Answer 14

proventriculus
gizzard (ventriculus)

Question 15

The proventriculus is the _____ chamber, with what components?

Answer 15

gastric chamber
HCl
pepsinogen
gastric lipase
mucus

Question 16

The gizzard is responsible for ________

Answer 16

mechanical grinding

Question 17

Small stone and grit accumulate in the ______

Answer 17

gizzard

Question 18

What is the gizzard lined with?

Answer 18

a thick cuticle called koilin

Question 19

There are solid secretions in the gizzard to protect from ____ & ______. Secretions solidify after exposure to ______

Answer 19

acid & pepsin
acid

Question 20

Overall, these organs are a lot shorter in birds.

Answer 20

intestines

Question 21

What is in the duodenal loop?

Answer 21

pancreas

Question 22

The bird doesn’t have what carbohydrate?

Answer 22

lactose

Question 23

What is Meckel’s diverticulum

Answer 23

yolk sac vestige
distinction between jejunum & ileum

Question 24

How often are the gastroduodenal contractions in birds?

Answer 24

about 3/min

Question 25

What are the sequences of gastroduodenal motility in birds?

Answer 25

contraction of thin ventricular muscles 2-3 peristaltic waves through duodeunum contraction of thick ventricular muscles peristaltic wave through ventriculus

Question 26

How many times per hour does digesta reflux into ventriculus from the duodenum and upper jejunum

Answer 26

4x/hr

Question 27

What is not present in hawks or songbirds?

Answer 27

paired ceca

Question 28

The paired ceca is important for

Answer 28

microbial fermentation of cellulose

Question 29

What is separated from ileum by ileocecal folds?

Answer 29

paired ceca

Question 30

What happens in the paired ceca of birds?

Answer 30

water reabsorbed here from refluxed urine urine from cloaca refluxed into ceca and uric acid provides nitrogen for bacteria

Question 31

What happens in the large intestine?

Answer 31

water reabsorption

Question 32

The cloaca is a common opening for _______, ________, and ________ systems

Answer 32

digestive reproductive urinary

Question 33

What happens in the cloaca?

Answer 33

excrete feces and urine together urine in form of uric acid

Question 34

What is the vent?

Answer 34

opening to the exterior

Question 35

What is the function of the bursa of fabricius?

Answer 35

immune function

Question 36

What is the series of major and minor contractions?

Answer 36

cecal evaluation

Question 37

What is the action of moving urine from cloaca to ceca to colon?

Answer 37

anti peristalsis in the colon

Question 38

How many antiperistaltic contractions per minute are there in the colon?

Answer 38

10-14

Question 39

Major contractions mean _______

Answer 39

defecation

Question 40

Minor contractions mean ________

Answer 40

mixing

Question 41

The liver is _______

Answer 41

bi-lobed

Question 42

What species don't have a gallbladder?

Answer 42

pigeons

Question 43

Each lobe has a ______ draining into duodenum near pancreatic ducts

Answer 43

bile duct

Question 44

Poultry have _____ cecal droppings per day

Answer 44

1-2

Question 45

What is the difference between cecal droppings and intestinal droppings?

Answer 45

cecal: chocolate brown color, homogenous texture 1-2 cecal droppings intestinal: greenish, granular texture; 25-50 intestinal droppings per day

Question 46

High _____ diets will not be digested

Answer 46

fiber

Question 47

What happens during an impacted crop?

Answer 47

consuming too much grass/fibrous material can happen if go long time without eating and then fast, too much, or eat a lot of grass food fails to move out due to obstruction lack of normal muscle contraction

Question 48

What happens in sour crop?

Answer 48

overgrowth of yeast —> disrupts normal bacteria/dilation and thickening of crop wall bad breath

Question 49

What is Marek's disease?

Answer 49

affects nervous system controlling contractions sour crop