Chicken

Chickens are omnivores. In the wild, they often scratch at the soil to search for seeds, insects and even larger animals such as lizards or young mice. Domestic chickens are not capable of long distance flight, although lighter birds are generally capable of flying for short distances, such as over fences or into trees (where they would naturally roost). Chickens are gregarious birds and live together in flocks. They have a communal approach to the incubation of eggs and raising of young. Individual chickens in a flock will dominate others, establishing a “pecking order”, with dominant individuals having priority for food access and nesting locations. The chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus) is a domesticated fowl, a subspecies of the Red Junglefowl. As one of the most common and widespread domestic animals, and with a population of more than 24 billion in 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other species of bird. Kingdom:Animalia Phylum:Chordata Class:Aves Order:Galliformes Family:Phasianidae Genus:Gallus Species:Gallus gallus Subspecies: Gallus gallus domesticus (Linnaeus, 1758)Linnaeus Classification

Skeleton of a Chicken Maxilla 2.Eye socket 3.Cranium 4.Mandible (bones of the hyobranchial apparatus are shown to be protruding below the mandible) 5.Atlas 6.Axis 7.Cervical vertebrae 8.Radius 9.Ulna 10.Humerus 11.Femur 12.Patella 13.Fibula 14.Tarsus 15.Sesamoid bone (ossified tibial cartilage) in hock joint 16.Tarsometatarsal joint 17.Scapula 18.Coracoid bone 19.Ribs 20.Sternum 21.Keel 22.Ilium 23.Caudal vertebrae 24.Ischium 25.Pubis 16 16d a 16c 16b 19 Text book of Veterinary anatomy, third edition, Dyce et al

Chicken Skull 1.Premaxilla 2.Nasal aperture 3.Nasal bone 4.Lacrimal Bone 5.Orbit 6.Frontal Bone 7.Parietal Bone 8.Tympanic cavity with cochlear and vestibular windows 9.Quadrate Bone 10.Articular Bone 11.Maxilla 12.Zygomatic arch 13.Mandible Text book of Veterinary anatomy, third edition, Dyce et al