SkullThe bones of the head. A bird's skull is small for the size of its body.
BeakThe upper half, a pointed bony jaw under a thin horny sheath. A bird has no teeth.
MandibleThe lower jaw, the bony core of the beak's lower half.
Cervical vertebraeThe vertebrae of the long neck, which bends very freely. How many there are differs from one kind of bird to another.
Furcula (wishbone)The two collarbones joined into one springy bone between the shoulders.
CoracoidA stout bone that gives the wing a firm base. It runs from the shoulder joint down to the front of the breastbone.
ScapulaThe shoulder blade, long and thin in a bird. It lies along the ribs, beside the backbone.
HumerusThe bone of the upper wing, from the shoulder to the elbow. It is hollow, and air from an air sac fills it.
RadiusThe thinner of the two bones of the forearm of the wing.
UlnaThe stouter of the two bones of the forearm. The secondary flight feathers are anchored along it.
CarpometacarpusWrist and hand bones fused into one bone. Two rods joined at both ends.
Wing digitsThe three short fingers of the wing. The first, the thumb, carries a small tuft of feathers, the alula.
SternumThe breastbone: a broad plate under the chest. The ribs and the coracoids join it.
KeelA deep blade of bone that stands out from the breastbone. The powerful flight muscles attach to it.
RibsThe bones of the rib cage. Each has an upper piece from the backbone and a lower piece that reaches the breastbone.
Uncinate processesA flat hook on a rib that points backward. It lies over the next rib. The hooks strengthen the rib cage.
Rear half 12
SynsacrumA long run of vertebrae fused into one bone. It runs from the back of the chest to the start of the tail. The hip bones are fused to it.
IliumThe long upper part of the hip bone. It is fused to the backbone along most of its length.
IschiumThe part of the hip bone behind the hip joint. It is smaller than the ilium and joined to it.
PubisA thin, narrow strip of bone running back along the ischium's edge. It ends a little past the ischium.
Caudal vertebraeThe few free vertebrae of the short tail. They lie between the fused back and the last tail bone.
PygostyleThe last tail vertebrae fused into one upturned, blade-shaped bone. The tail feathers are anchored round it.
FemurThe thigh bone, from the hip joint to the knee. On a chicken it carries the thigh meat.
PatellaThe kneecap, a small bone at the front of the knee joint.
TibiotarsusThe long bone of the drumstick. The shin bone with the upper ankle bones fused to its lower end.
FibulaA slender splint of bone beside the upper part of the tibiotarsus. It tapers away before the ankle.
TarsometatarsusThe lower ankle bones and the foot bones fused into one. It is the shank. The joint above it is the ankle, and the bird walks on its toes.
ToesFour toes: three point forward and one, the first, points backward.
How this list was compiled: Every bone name and detail line was checked on 2026-09-30, for facts only and with nothing copied, in at least two of these: (1) O. C. Bradley, The Structure of the Fowl, 1915, https://archive.org/details/structureoffowl00brad; (2) T. J. Parker and W. A. Haswell, A Text-book of Zoology, volume 2, 1910, the pigeon, https://archive.org/details/textbookofzoolog02parkrich; (3) Wikipedia, Bird anatomy, Synsacrum and Flight feather; (4) OpenStax, Biology 2e, section 29.5; (5) J. Jacob, Avian Skeletal System, Poultry Extension (University of Kentucky), https://poultry.extension.org/articles/poultry-anatomy/avian-skeletal-system/. The sources list says which source gave what. Licence: own work
The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain shapes. Own original schematic drawing; nothing traced or copied. Licence: own work
How it works
This labeled bird skeleton is a chicken, seen from the left inside the outline of the standing bird. A pigeon has the same bones under the same names. The front half and the rear half are shown in turn.
Read the full guide
Front half, then rear half
The front half holds the skull, the long neck, the shoulder, the lifted wing and the chest with its keel. The rear half holds the fused back, the hip bone, the short tail and one leg. Tap a name to read about that bone. Press Quiz me and the names come off.
Bones that only a bird has
Much of a bird's skeleton is fused for flight. The collarbones form one wishbone, the furcula. The hand is one bone, the carpometacarpus. The back and hips are one block, the synsacrum. The tail ends in the pygostyle, and the breastbone carries a deep keel.
The joint halfway up a chicken's leg is its ankle. The knee is higher, tucked against the body.
Wing order from the shoulder: humerus, then radius and ulna side by side, then the hand.
Questions and answers
What is the wishbone on a bird?
The wishbone is the furcula: the bird's two collarbones joined into one bone between the shoulders. It is springy enough to bend a little as the wings beat.
What is the keel on a bird's skeleton?
A deep blade of bone that stands out from the breastbone. The large muscles that move the wings are attached to it.
Are bird bones hollow?
Some are. Many birds have hollow bones with thin struts of bone across the inside, and some, such as the humerus, are filled with air. Not every bone is hollow, and not every bird has them.
What is the pygostyle?
The last bone of the tail. Several tail vertebrae are fused into one upturned, blade-shaped bone, and the tail feathers are anchored round it.