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American Journal of  
Life Science and Innovation (AJLSI)

Preparing and Presenting a Pigeon Skeleton for Gross Anatomical Study 
Using Boiling Maceration Method: A Quick and Effective Method

N. Jannat1*, R. Islam2, N. Sultana2

Volume 2 Issue 1, Year 2023
ISSN: 2833-1397 (Online)

DOI: https://doi.org/10.54536/ajlsi.v2i1.1269
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Article Information ABSTRACT

Received: February 04 2023

Accepted: March 02, 2023

Published: March 06, 2023

The study’s main objective was to prepare and display the pigeon skeleton using a practical 
and effective approach. Two matured domestic pigeons (Columba livia), aged 8 months old 
were purchased from local market, Gazipur sadar, Bangladesh for this purpose. This exper-
iment was carried out in the department of  Anatomy and Histology, Faculty of  Veterinary 
Medicine and Animal Science in Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural Univer-
sity, Gazipur, Bangladesh, in January 2021. The birds were first killed by being injected with 
MgSO4 directly into the hearts.  After dead, they were peeled using a knife. 3% soda water 
solution was used to boil peeled animals for two hours. Having cooling, the bony samples 
were cleaned and dipped into 10% solution of  bleaching water for 1 hour to avoid further 
growth of  microorganism following washed by tap water. After drying in the sun for eight 
hours, the skeletal pieces were fully articulated for the skeletal frame. The whole processes 
were taken 2 days (33 hours). The boiling maceration method for preparation of  skeleton is 
very effective because restrain the chance of  losing small bones, requires less expenditure, 
time and labor. It is also visible that the bone’s original color was preserved. Extracted bones 
were divided into two parts, axial and appendicular skeleton. Axial skeleton comprises the 
bones of  skull, vertebrae such as-cervical, thoracic, lumbar and sacral vertebrae (fused to 
form synsacrum) and coccygeal vertebrae or caudal vertebrae then ribs, costal cartilages and 
breast bone or keel bone. In contrast, the appendicular skeleton comprises the forelimb or 
wing bone like scapula, coracoid, clavicle, humerus, radius-ulna and manus. On the other-
hand hindlimb or pelvic limb comprises of  pelvic girdle, femur, tibio-fibula and feet bone 
(metatarsal and digits). In adult pigeon no developed tarsal bone. Therefore, this is the most 
efficient way for quickly preparing and presenting skeleton for use in studies of  the avian 
skeletal system. 

Keywords

Skeleton, Pigeon, Effective, 
Boiling Maceration

INTRODUCTION
Skeletons serve as informative equipment in veterinary 
and medical education, exhibits in museums, hunting 
trophies, and an important part of  scientific research 
materials (Kempa, 2016). A skeleton is usually a rigid 
supportive or protective structure or framework of  an 
organism that supports the rest of  the body and facilitates 
movement (Merrium-webster, 2021). The more delicate 
skeletal system of  vertebrates is internal and is composed 
of  mainly by connective tissues. This includes bone 
and the various fibrous substances that form the joints, 
connect bone to bone, bone to muscle, enclose muscle 
bundles and attach the internal organs to the supporting 
structure (Sidnie, 2019). This skeleton is divided into two 
parts for study purposes: axial and appendicular. In which 
axial skeleton formed by the bones of  skull, vertebral 
column, ribs and sternum. On the other hand, the main 
component of  appendicular skeleton are limbs (fore 
and hind limbs) (Ghosh, 2016). However, bird skeleton 
is less differing from the other vertebrates. Birds have 
a lightweight skeleton made of  mostly thin and hollow 
bones. The keel-shaped sternum (breastbone) is where 
the powerful flight muscles attach to the body. Birds 
have a smaller total number of  bones than mammals or 
reptiles. 
The significance of  bird skeleton preparation to 
ornithology study and biodiversity preservation. Avian 

skeleton preparation is basic need for gross anatomical 
study. The skeleton of  birds is crucial for study on 
a variety of  topics, including phylogenic studies, age 
and growth assessments, and functional morphology 
(Bemis et al., 2004; Burke and Feduccia, 1997; Olson 
1973). Skeleton are helpful for studying evolutionary 
morphology and identifying animals from archeological 
sites. Skeleton preparation serves a precious opportunity 
to gain anatomical knowledge of  bones, muscles, 
tendons, nerves, etc (Takeshi, 2010). Skeleton collections 
are necessary for various forensic applications, including 
identifying animal and bird carcasses that have been 
illegally stolen or bones that have been used as evidence 
in other crimes (Olson, 2003). As a result, the necessity 
of  bird skeleton preparation is increasing rapidly. For 
academic purposes different bird skeletons have also been 
prepared for anatomical and comparative studies. The 
main drawback of  skeleton preparation is time consuming, 
with maceration often being the most time-consuming 
and difficult phase. Skeleton preparation is always a 
drawn-out, laborious, and delicate procedure requiring 
numerous processes. Several maceration methods, such 
as, burial maceration, cold water maceration, hot water 
maceration, insect maceration, chemical maceration, and 
enzymatic maceration are available (Raghavan, 1964; 
Gofur, 2010). Veterinary educational institutions do 
not undertake skeleton preparation due to procedural 

1 Department of  Anatomy and Histology, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University, Gazipur, Bangladesh
2 Department of  Anatomy and Histology, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh, Bangladesh
* Corresponding author’s e-mail: njannat@bsmrau.edu.bd

https://doi.org/10.54536/ajlsi.v2i1.1269
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complexities (Mahapatra et al., 2018).
The main aim of  this study was to describe the total time 
required for the skeleton preparation procedures as well 
as how quickly the axial and appendicular skeleton of  bird 
species could be processed and assembled.The findings 
of  this research will serve as a guide in the skeleton 
preparation of  a bird species within a concise period of  
time and contribute to the knowledge for building up 
anatomy museum. Through anatomy (osteology), one 
learns about the bones in anatomical and physiological 
ways. This present study was undertaken for better 
understanding of  avian anatomy by preparation of  
skeleton in a quick and effective methods so that we can 
treat the bird species in better ways.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
A total of  2 matured pigeons (Columba livia), aged 
8 months old, were purchased from local market in 
Gazipur sadar and transported to the department of  
Anatomy and Histology, Faculty of  Veterinary Medicine 
and Animal Science, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur 
Rahman Agricultural University, Gazipur, Bangladesh. 
All the pigeon was possessed good health and devoid 
of  any external deformities certified by the registered 
veterinarian.  All kinds of  precautions were taken during 
skeleton preparation such as use of  rubber gloves during 
preparing a carcass and care was taken to avoid stick 
injuries according to Baker et al. (2003).
The materials used for skeleton preparation were: (1) 
Wires of  various gauges (2) Drill machine (3) Soda 
(Sodium carbonate, NA2CO3) (4) 10% bleaching solution 
(5) Wooden platform (6) Good quality sticking materials 
(Fevicol) (7) Varnish.
The methods involved in skeleton preparation were: 
(1) Birds preparation (2) Skinning, evisceration and de-
fleshing of  carcass (3) Carcass maceration (4) Sequential 
arrangement of  bone and bone drying (5) Construction 
of  skeletal frame and bone varnishing.

Birds Preparation
Before slaughter all the pigeons were kept 6hours fasting 
condition. Then, MgSO4 was injected directly into 
heart. The IACUC approved these euthanasia methods 
of  killing animals for humane killing of  animals and 
recommendations of  the American Veterinary Medical 
Association (AVMA) Panel on Euthanasia, 2000 and 
in accordance with humane euthanasia defined by 
the Federal Animal Welfare Act (54 FR 36112-36163) 
(Source: IOWA)

Skinning, evisceration and de-fleshing of  carcass
Skin was removed by cutting between the skin and muscle 
with a scalpel while pulling the skin. Then maximum 
amount of  muscles, adipose tissue and all visceral organs 
were removed with the aid of  scalpel, blades, forceps, 
scissors and knife up to the bones were visible.

Carcass maceration
The bones of  the pigeon were heated by using normal 
heater in 3% solution of  soda water (Sodium carbonate, 
NA2CO3) with anionic surfactant (detergent) to over 80ºC 
for 2 hours in a metal drum regarding to the concept from 
Baker et al. (2003) and Van Cleave (2010). Soda (Sodium 
carbonate, NA2CO3) water solution was used for proper 
and complete digestion of  muscles (Gofur and Khan, 
2010). Then it was kept 2 hours for cooling and after that 
the remaining fleshes, tissues and ligaments on the boiled 
bones were removed with knives. Then all the bones were 
rinsed with clean tap water and dip into 10% bleaching 
water solution for 1 hour to prevent further growth of  
microorganisms (Musa et at., 2015).

Sequential arrangement of  bone and bone drying
Axial skeletal bones such as, skull, vertebrae, ribs and keel 
bone were arranged in sequential order and protected 
with the help of  fine stainless steel wire. Appendicular 
skeletal bones such as, forelimb and hindlimb bones were 
also placed in order in a steel plate. Then all the bones 
were kept in sunlight for a period of  8 hours for complete 
sundry. 

Construction of  skeletal frame and bone varnishing
The skeletal frame was constructed in a wooden stage of  
12-inch length and 10-inch breadth. All the bones were 
articulated in a proper way to form a bird skeleton.

Construction of  axial skeleton
All the vertebrae such as, cervical, thoracic, lumbar and 
sacral vertebrae (fused to form synsacrum) and caudal 
vertebrae were articulated with the aid of  fevicol glue 
in a sequential order. Then, occipital bone of  skull and 
cranial part of  the atlas were drilled and tied by using 
stainless steel wire. All pair of  ribs were attached with 
their corresponding vertebrae to sternum by using glue 
according to the concept of  Van Cleave (2010).

Construction of  appendicular skeleton
The forelimb (wing) and hindlimb (leg) were articulated 
with the axial skeleton with the help of  stainless steel wire. 
Firstly, wing skeleton bones namely, scapula, coracoid, 
clavicle, humerus, radius-ulna and manus were articulated 
sequentially by using adhesive glue. Then hindlimb bones 
namely, hip bone (consists of  ilium, ischium and pin bone), 
femur, tibia -fibula and feet bone (metatarsal and digits) 
were tied up chronologically with the aid of  fevicol glue.
The skeletal framework was positioned in a wooden 
platform of  required dimension according to the size 
of  the animal for display and gross anatomical study. 
Varnishing of  bone was done by using combined mixture 
of  thinner and varnish to give the bones shiny appearance.

RESULTS
The bones expelled from chemical maceration process 

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Table 1: Steps involved with time requirement for preparation of  pigeon skeleton.
Sl. No. Steps involved for skeleton preparation Time (Hours)
1 Birds preparation 7 hours
2 Skinning, evisceration and de-fleshing of  carcass 3 hours
3 Carcass maceration 5 hours
4 Sequential arrangement of  bone and bone drying 10 hours
5 Construction of  skeletal frame and bone varnishing 8 hours

comprised of  the axial and appendicular skeleton. All 
the bones appeared whitish and intact. The axial skeleton 
comprised of  the bones of- skull, vertebrae such as-
cervical, thoracic, lumbar and sacral vertebrae (fused 
to form synsacrum) and coccygeal vertebrae or caudal 
vertebrae, ribs, costal cartilages and breast bone or keel 
bone. On the other hand, the appendicular skeleton 

comprised of  the forelimb or wing bone as like scapula, 
coracoid, clavicle, humerus, radius-ulna and manus, on 
the contrary hindlimb or leg bone comprises of  femur, 
tibio-fibula and feet bone (metatarsal and digits). 
The time needed by each of  the steps  of  pigeon skeleton 
preparation technique is shown in Table 1.

Description of  pigeon skeletal system
There have been a number of  modifications of  the bones 
found in birds that enhance the ability to fly. 

Axial Skeleton
This skeleton comprised of  the bones of- skull, vertebrae 
such as-cervical, thoracic, lumbar and sacral vertebrae 
(fused to form synsacrum) and coccygeal vertebrae or 
caudal vertebrae, ribs, costal cartilages and breast bone 
or keel bone.

Skull
The skull is divided into two components: 1) Rounded 
cranium (neurocranium) and 2) Conical facial region 
(viscerocranium) (Figure 1). These two regions were 
easily identified by seeing two large orbits or openings 
into which the eyes fit. Two very thin bones, the sphenoid 
and ethmoid bones, together form the very thin septum 
that separates these orbits. Since the volume of  the brain 
increases relatively little with respect to body size, smaller 
birds have a comparatively larger head than bigger species.
Bones of  the cranium are: i) Occipital bone (unpaired 
basioccipital bone, unpaired supraoccipital bone 
and exoccipital bones) ii) Sphenoid bone (unpaired 
basisphenoid bone, laterosphenoid bone and unpaired 
parasphenoid bone) iii) Squamosal bone iv) Parietal bone 
V) Frontal bone vi) Ethmoid bone and viii) Lacrimal bone
Bones of  the face are: The bones of  the facial portion 
of  skull are –i) Premaxillary bone ii) Nasal bone iii)
Palatine bone iv) Maxillary bone v) Jugal/quadratojugal 
bone vi) Vomer (usually unpaired) vii)Pterygoid bone 
viii)Quadrate bone ix) Mandible (unpaired) and x)
Hyobranchial apparatus (unpaired).
The conformation of  the facial skeleton is influenced 
considerably by the shape and mobility of  the beak. The 
rostral tip of  the face is formed by the premaxillary bone 
having palatine process, frontal process and maxillary 
process (Figure 1A). The nasal bone is bounded by 
the frontal and maxillary processes of  the premaxillary 
bone. The palatine bone forms the continuation of  the 
incomplete hard palate. The relatively small maxillary 

bone joins the premaxillary bone to form the upper 
beak’s short, caudal terminal portion. 
The mandible is a laterally flattened bone that only 
contributes to the vertical dimensions of  the head. Its 
six pairs of  fused bones form an acutely angled, caudally 
open structure (Figure 1B).
The quadrate bone plays a key role in the movement 
of  the maxillopalatine apparatus. It articulates with the 
mandible to form the principal joint of  the lower jaw.

Vertebrae
The vertebral column has 38 bones and is divided into 
five segments – the cervical vertebrae, the thoracic 
vertebrae, the lumbar vertebrae, the sacral vertebrae and 
the coccygeal vertebrae. The vertebral column is often 
described by way of  the vertebral formula that is:
C12, T7, L+S14 & C5 = 38

Cervical Vertebra
The cervical vertebral column is typically S-shaped 
in avian species. There are 12 cervical vertebrae in the 
pigeon (Figure 1D).
The first cervical vertebra (atlas) is a small and ring-
shaped bone with a dorsal arch and a ventrally located 
body (Figure 1E). A recess on the cranial surface of  the 
body, the condyloid fossa forms the articular surface for 
the occipital condyle of  the occipital bone. The dorsal 
surface of  the body bears the articular surface for the 
dens of  the axis. 
The second cervical vertebra (axis) is slightly larger than 
the atlas (Figure 1F). Its elongated body (corpus axis) 
articulates caudally with the third cervical vertebra. Its 
cranial surface possesses a small process; the dens forms 
a joint with the atlas. On subsequent vertebral bodies and 
the articular surface is saddle-shaped.

Thoracic, lumbar, sacral and caudal vertebrae
The seven thoracic vertebrae bear a pair of  complete 
ribs consisting of  a dorsal vertebral rib articulating with 
the vertebra and the ventral sternal rib, which in turn 
articulates with the breastbone (sternum). Each vertebral 

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rib bears a flat, backward-pointing spur, the uncinate 
process, which is characteristic of  birds. Total number 
of  lumbar and sacral vertebrae are 14 in number. The 
seventh thoracic, lumbar, sacral and first caudal vertebrae 
are closely fused to form the synsacrum, to which the 
pelvic girdle is attached (Figure 1G). Posterior to the 
synsacrum is a series of  free fused caudal vertebrae form 
the pygostyle, which supports the tail feathers (Figure 1H). 

Ribs
There are seven pairs of  ribs articulate with the thoracic 
vertebrae. The first, second do not articulate with the 
sternum. The third to the sixth have two segments, the 
vertebral segment articulate with thoracic vertebra, and 
sternal segment articulate with breast bone or sternum. All 
except the first and last have uncinate (meaning hooked 
or bent) processes that project backward over the outer 
surface of  the next rib and connect to it by a ligament, 
which adds strength to the thoracic cavity (Figure 1L).

Sternum
The sternum is an extensive bone looks like quadrilateral 
plate exhibiting a large ventrally directed crest known 
as keel or carina, which serves as the bony surface for 
the origin of  the major flight muscles- pectorals and 
supracoracoideus (Figure 1M).

Figure 1: Diagram of  a pigeon skeleton. Yellow border 
indicates the skull. (A) Premaxillary bone, (B) Mandible, 
(C) Occipital bone, (D) Cervical vertebrae, (E) Atlas, (F) 
Axis, (G) Synsacrum, (H) Pygostyle, (I) Ilium, (J) Ischium, 
(K) Pubis, (L) Ribs, (M) Keel or breast bone, and (N) 
Acetabulum.

Appendicular skeleton 
Consists of  forelimb or thoracic limb and hind limb or 
pelvic limb

The forelimb or thoracic limb 
The skeleton of  the forelimb or thoracic limb comprises 
the bones of  the pectoral girdle and the bones of  the 
wing. The fully developed avian pectoral girdle consists 
of  the- scapula, coracoid, clavicle, furcula or wishbone 
(Figure 2).

The scapula is sabre-shaped, narrow, thin and slightly 
curved, unlike the shoulder blade of  other animals 
(Figure 2.1). The glenoid process of  the scapula laterally 
completes the articular surface for the head of  the 
humerus. Craniomedially the scapula is joined to the 
clavicle. The long caudal extremity is slightly curved 
and lies approximately parallel to the vertebral column, 
extending almost to the ilium. The coracoid bone is the 
strongest bone in the pectoral girdle and rod-shaped bone 
that connects the cranial border of  the sternum with the 
shoulder joint (Figure 2.3).   The clavicle is a thin, curved 
rod like bone. Its proximal part connects with the cranial 
extremity of  coracoid and scapula. An osseous union 
joins the two clavicles to form the ‘wishbone’ (furcula) 
(Figure 2.2). The bones of  the wing consist of-humerus, 
radius-ulna and manus (carpus, metacarpus and digits).

Humerus, radius-ulna 
The humerus is a largest wing bone with an ovoid head for 
articulation with the scapula, coracoid and clavicle (Figure 
2A). The pneumatic foramen is located at the proximal end 
of  the humerus allows the invasion of  the clavicular air 
sac which pneumatizes the interior of  this large bone. The 
forearm bone, ulna (Figure 2B) is thicker and longer but 
radius (Figure 2C) is thinner and shorter that lies laterally 
to the ulna. The large space between the ulna and radius is 
called the interosseus space.

Carpus, metacarpus, and digits (manus)
The manus or hand, consists of  the carpus, metacarpus 
and the digits. The carpus of  an adult pigeon having two 
bones, namely-the ulnar and radial carpal bone articulate 
with distal end of  ulna and radius bone respectively 
(Figure 2D). The metacarpus is considered as a single 
bone that is produced by the union of  three elements 
(alular, major and minor metacarpal bone). In the adult 
pigeon, these three elements are fused with the distal 
row of  carpal bones, giving rise to the carpometacarpus 
(Figure 2E). At the proximal end of  the carpometacarpus, 
the carpal trochlea articulates with the carpal bones.
The alular metacarpal bone bears the articular surface in 

Figure 2: Diagram of  a pigeon skeleton showing the 
forelimb. (A) Humerus, (B) Ulna, (C) Radius, (D) Carpals, 
(E) Metacarpals, (F) Digits, (1) Scapula, (2) Clavicle, and 
(3) Coracoid

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the distal end for the alular digit. The major metacarpal 
and the smaller minor metacarpal bone fused distally and 
extended towards the digits. In the distal extremity, each 
metacarpal bone bears a surface for articulation with the 
phalanges. So, recognizable digits are three (3) in number 
(Figure 2F). 

Pelvic Limb or Leg
The pelvic limb is divided into- pelvic girdle or hip bones 
and the leg. The pelvic girdle or hip bones consists of  three 
bones - ilium, ischium and pubis or pin bones (Figure 1). 
The bones of  the leg are- Femur or thighbone, tibio-fibula 
and pes (tarsus, metatarsus and digits or toes) (Figure 3).
 
The Pelvic Girdle
The ilium is large bone which fused to the synsacrum to 
provide strength and rigidity (Figure 1I). The ischium is 
much smaller and is continuous with the ilium (Figure 
1J). An opening is present in ischium for the passes of  
sciatic nerve. The pubis is a narrow strip of  bone that 
runs along the border of  the ischeum to which it is joined 
for a short distance only. The free posterior end projects 
backward slightly beyond the ischeum to form the pin or 
pubic bones (Figure 1K). The ilium, ischium and pubis 
which all meet at a deep concavity called the acetabulum, 
into which the head of  the femur articulate (Figure 1N).

The Leg
Consists of-femur or thighbone, tibiotarsus, fibula and 
pes (tarsus, metatarsus and digits or toes).

Femur
The femur is a typical cylindrical shape long bone with 
a slight cranial curvature (Figure 3A). The proximal 
extremity has a prominent head that articulate loosely 
into the acetabulum. The distal extremity has a deep 
pulley shaped articular surface for the patella (knee cap). 
Two convex condyles, namely, lateral and medial, are 
present in the distal end of  femur. The lateral surface of  
the lateral condyles articulates with the head of  fibula.
The tibia is a much longer bone than the fibula and is 
much thicker at the proximal end than it is at the distal 
end (Figure 3C). The proximal row of  tarsal bones is 
fused to the distal end of  the tibia. For that reason, it is 
known as tibiotarsus bone. The fibula is greatly reduced 
bone with a slender spicule (needle-like) structure and has 
a flattened head for attachment to the proximal head of  
the tibia (Figure 3B).

Pes (tarsus, metatarsus and digits or toes)
There is no independent tarsus bone in the adult pigeon. 
The matured metatarsus is a long bone formed by the 
union of  the second, third and fourth metatarsal bones 
(Figure 3D). Most pigeon have four digits or toes – three 
facing forwards (Figure 3E) and one facing back (Figure 
3F). The basic number of  phalanges on the toes are two, 
three, four, and five, respectively, one more than the 
number of  the toe.

Each toe having one claw. So, number of  claw are eight (8). 
Claw is convex dorsally and concave ventrally (Figure 3G).

Figure 3: Diagram of  a pigeon skeleton showing 
hindlimb. (A) Femur, (B) Fibula, (C) Tibia, (D) Metatarsal, 
(E) Forward digits, (F) Backward digits, and (G) Claw

DISCUSSION
Skeleton is the main framework of  hard structures that 
supports and protects the soft structures of  the body 
(Getty, 1975).  It is composed of  bones, cartilage and 
ligaments which maintain the body’s shape amenability 
and locomotion (Ghosh, 2006). Skeleton preparation is 
one of  the most important part for anatomical study. 
In this study, we reveled total duration for the preparation 
of  pigeon skeleton took 2 days which is short period 
compared to the 18 days-2 hours both in pigeon and 
squirrel, 5 months-6 days-6 hours in deer, and 10 months-11 
days-12 hours-30 minutes in crocodile (Archana, 2018). 
Now a day, veterinary educational institutions do not 
take responsibility for the preparation of  skeleton due 
to procedural complication because different methods 
of  skeleton preparation need different time (Olson, 
2003). Oliveira (2018) claims that biological maceration 
utilising fly larvae and cold water did not produce a good 
outcome, leading to fragile bone. In this experiment we 
used 2 matured pigeon aged 8 months old. According to 
the concept of  Baker et al., (2003) all kinds of  care and 
precautions were taken to avoid injuries before skeleton 
preparation. After sacrificing animals, we did not use any 
fixative solution because it may affect the bone tissue 
(Takeshi, 2010). In order to quickly prepare the skeleton, 
skinning and defleshing was done as much as possible. 
Then, 3% solution of  soda water (Sodium carbonate, 
NA2CO3) with anionic surfactant (detergent) was used 
for carcass maceration (Baker et al., 2003 and Van Cleave, 
2010). Gofur and Khan, (2010) stated that Soda (Sodium 
carbonate, NA2CO3) water solution is appropriate 
for proper and complete digestion of  muscles. Carcass 
maceration can be done by remaining the carcass in a pit 
for 1-2 months, according to the size of  the animals and 
birds (Raghavan, 1964). However, it is time consuming 
and have a chance to loose small bones. The odor and 

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discoloration of  the skeleton are often the drawbacks of  
employing the fly larvae maceration method (Auricchio & 
Salomão, 2002). Then the bones of  pigeon were boiled in 
3% solution of  soda water for 2 hours because too much 
boiling can crack the hard tissue (Takeshi, 2010). After 
boiling, removal of  excess flesh as well as bleaching wash 
were done to avoid further decomposition of  bone by 
microorganisms (Gofur and Khan, 2010). Thereafter, the 
bones were dried completely by sun rays. Afterwards, the 
bones were articulated sequentially to form a skeleton and 
this skeleton was positioned on a wooden stage with the 
help of  stand and thick wire (Figure 1). Finally, the skeleton 
was labelled and housed in a display case (Musa et al., 2015). 
The total number of  bones evicted was 206.  The axial 
and appendicular skeleton bones help in locomotion and 
protection of  the brain, spinal cord and other internal 
organs of  the body respectively (Sturtz, 2012). In this 
experiment, all the extracted bones of  the skeletal system 
were appeared whitish and intact as reported by Kyle and 
Jesse (2018). 
The structure of  skeletal system of  the pigeon is similar 
to previous descriptions on the domestic fowl (Getty, 
1975; Konig, 2009). The axial skeleton comprised of  
the bones of- skull, vertebrae such as-cervical, thoracic, 
lumbar and sacral vertebrae (fused to form synsacrum) 
and coccygeal vertebrae or caudal vertebrae, ribs, costal 
cartilages and breast bone or keel bone. As opposed 
to, appendicular skeleton comprises of  the bones of  
forelimb and hindlimb. Forelimb or thoracic limb bones 
are- scapula, coracoid, clavicle, humerus, radius-ulna, 
carpus, metacarpus and manus. Hindlimb bones are- 
pelvic girdle, femur, tibio-fibula, tarsal, metatarsal and 
toes. Description of  the bone are similar according to the 
concept from konig, (2009). 
In the present study, we followed the boiling maceration 
method for preparation of  pigeon skeleton is swift and 
safe compared to the report of  Kyle, (2018), whose 
method involved burying of  the dead animal for 60 days 
and handling of  decomposed carcass using dangerous 
chemicals such as chlorine bleach and fumes, which is 
time consuming and not safe. 

CONCLUSION 
Our major goal was to prepare the skeleton in a practical 
and economical way. This approach is also simpler, less 
costly, and time-saving while maintaining the integrity of  
all the bones. This technique required a total of  33 hours, 
or 2 days, to prepare the skeleton of  a pigeon. This is 
the shortest time ever for skeleton preparation and study. 
However, this might change depending on the size of  the 
animals and birds.
 
Acknowledgement
The authors are grateful to the department of  Anatomy 
and Histology, Faculty of  Veterinary Medicine and 
Animal Science in Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman 
Agricultural University, Salna, Gazipur, Bangladesh 
for imparting the opportunity to conduct research to 

encourage avian skeleton learning among students of  
veterinary medicine and animal science. So, I would like 
to extend my gratitude to undergraduate students for 
their enormous work. 

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