<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<p>The Guinea fowl (<italic>Numida meleagridis</italic>) is a semi-domestic bird whose commercial popularity is on the increase. The gross anatomy of the hindlimbs of 8 helmeted Guinea fowls of equal sexes were studied. The pubic shafts were free, thus they did not fuse ventrally to form a symphysis. The ilium had a quadrilateral and roughly triangular pre and post acetabular wings, respectively. A conspicuous renal fossa was observed in the post acetabular wing. An incomplete concentric obturator foramen, lacking a caudal margin, was formed by the ventral border of the ischium and dorsal border of the cranial pubic shaft, while a prominent ischiopubic fissure was formed by the same bones, caudally. The incomplete concentric nature of the obturator foramen created a common space between it and the ischiopubic fissure. The femoral major trochanter was more proximal than the head, while the minor tro-chanter and the head were on the same horizontal level. The femur lacked a visible pneumatic foramen. The tibiotarsus had a prominent cranial cnemial crest. The fibular spine terminated at the tibia mid-shaft, leaving one interosseous space. An intertarsal sesamoid bone was identified, indicative of an adult skeleton. Crests and channels depicted the hypotarsus. Vascular foramen was identified in the distal extremity of the tibiotarsus. Digit I was oriented to the planter direction.</p>
<p>These results, and others, were compared with those of other birds in the available literature, and some morpho-functional paradigm of the Guinea fowl hindlimb skeleton was established.</p>
</abstract>

The Guinea fowl (Numida meleagridis) is a semi-domestic bird whose commercial popularity is on the increase. The gross anatomy of the hindlimbs of 8 helmeted Guinea fowls of equal sexes were studied. The pubic shafts were free, thus they did not fuse ventrally to form a symphysis. The ilium had a quadrilateral and roughly triangular pre and post acetabular wings, respectively. A conspicuous renal fossa was observed in the post acetabular wing. An incomplete concentric obturator foramen, lacking a caudal margin, was formed by the ventral border of the ischium and dorsal border of the cranial pubic shaft, while a prominent ischiopubic fissure was formed by the same bones, caudally. The incomplete concentric nature of the obturator foramen created a common space between it and the ischiopubic fissure. The femoral major trochanter was more proximal than the head, while the minor tro-chanter and the head were on the same horizontal level. The femur lacked a visible pneumatic foramen. The tibiotarsus had a prominent cranial cnemial crest. The fibular spine terminated at the tibia mid-shaft, leaving one interosseous space. An intertarsal sesamoid bone was identified, indicative of an adult skeleton. Crests and channels depicted the hypotarsus. Vascular foramen was identified in the distal extremity of the tibiotarsus. Digit I was oriented to the planter direction.
These results, and others, were compared with those of other birds in the available literature, and some morpho-functional paradigm of the Guinea fowl hindlimb skeleton was established.

Hindlimb Skeletal Morphology of the Helmeted Guinea Fowl (<italic>Numida meleagridis</italic>)

Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Ilorin

Department of Veterinary Anatomy, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine

Folia Veterinaria

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Hindlimb Skeletal Morphology of the Helmeted Guinea Fowl ()

The Guinea fowl (Numida meleagridis) is a semi-domestic bird whose commercial popularity is on the increase. The gross anatomy of the hindlimbs of 8 helmeted...

Hindlimb Skeletal Morphology of the Helmeted Guinea Fowl (Numida meleagridis)

Published Online: Mar 19, 2023

Page range: 24 - 34

Received: Aug 19, 2022

Accepted: Dec 19, 2022

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/fv-2023-0003

Keywords
femur, Guinea fowl, tarsometatarsus, tibiotarsus

© 2023 K. T. Onwuama et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Hindlimb Skeletal Morphology of the Helmeted Guinea Fowl (Numida meleagridis)

Published Online: Mar 19, 2023

Page range: 24 - 34

Received: Aug 19, 2022

Accepted: Dec 19, 2022

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/fv-2023-0003

Keywordsfemur, Guinea fowl, tarsometatarsus, tibiotarsus

© 2023 K. T. Onwuama et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Keywords
femur, Guinea fowl, tarsometatarsus, tibiotarsus