Anatomy & Physiology: Chicken Dissection Analysis

In this lab, we explored the major muscles of a chicken through dissection in place of an actual human body. Starting with the main body and ending with limbs, we sliced and peeled away skin and identified muscles as they were uncovered. We could feel the contraction and relaxation of the muscles when you flexed or extended the wing. Muscles are the ones that perform an action, where as the bone they are attached to give structure to the body and hold the muscles in place. Tendons attached muscles to bones. For example, the biceps and triceps are attached to the humerus bone by tendons. The biceps flex to bring the lower arm as the triceps relax. Usually, a muscles has an end that does the contracting and an end that doesn't move. Tendons of the origin of a muscle fixes the muscle to the bone on the side that does not move, while tendons of insertion move as the muscle moves (aka the side that contracts). While chickens and humans share many of the same muscles, like deltoids and quadriceps, the muscles of a chicken have been altered to maximize the parts that humans like to eat. Chicken breasts are proportionally much larger than that of a human as are their leg muscles like the gastrocnemius.