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Thoracic and Coracoid Arteries In Two Families of Birds, Columbidae and Hirundinidae
UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS PUBLICATIONS, MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY
Editors: E. Raymond Hall, Chairman, Henry S. Fitch, Theodore H. Eaton, Jr.
Volume 12, No. 13, pp. 553-573, 7 figs. Published March 2, 1964
PRINTED BY THE STATE PRINTER TOPEKA, KANSAS 1964
[Transcriber's Note: Words surrounded by tildes, like ~this~ signifies words in bold. Words surrounded by underscores, like _this_, signifies words in italics.]
Thoracic and Coracoid Arteries In Two Families of Birds, Columbidae and Hirundinidae
MYOLOGY AND ANGIOLOGY: HIRUNDINIDAE 557 Myology 557 Angiology 558
MYOLOGY AND ANGIOLOGY: COLUMBIDAE 560 Myology 560 Angiology 560
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS 562 Individual Variation 562 Intrafamilial Differences 563 Interfamilial Differences 565
Most descriptions of the circulatory system of birds, largely the work of Glenny, have dealt with arteries of the neck and thorax in a wide variety of species. As a result of his work, Glenny offered several hypotheses concerning the phylogenetic, hence taxonomic, significance of differences in some of these vessels. He also described six types of thoracic arterial arrangements and stated that these categories might represent various levels of evolution (Glenny, 1955:543-544).
The families Columbidae (pigeons) and Hirundinidae (swallows) have two nearly extreme arterial types described by Glenny, and are universally acknowledged as monophyletic. Differences within the families, therefore, can be considered as valid intrafamilial differences. I have investigated the thoracic and coracoid arteries and their branches in members of these two families to determine the degree of individual variability of the vessels, and the possible causes of interspecific and intrafamilial differences.
All specimens studied are in The University of Kansas Museum of Natural History. They were preserved in alcohol and their blood vessels were not injected. Dissections were made with the aid of a binocular microscope at magnifications of 10× and 20×.
Following is a list of the species studied, the number of individuals of each species dissected, and the catalogue numbers of the specimens. The nomenclature and classification are those of the American Ornithologists' Union's _Check-List of North American Birds_, fifth edition (1957).