28 



INSTRUCTIONS FOR COLLECTORS 



Take the skinned body, place the point of the scissors in the vent and cut 

 the wall of the body upwards and diagonally out towards and through the 

 ribs, repeating this on each side, It is now possible to lift up the sternum to 

 expose the intestines and other organs. Push the liver and intestines to one 

 side to expose the kidneys, which are elongated flattened bodies pressed 

 against the inner surface of the pelvis just posterior to the lungs. The 

 sexual organs vary considerably in size according to the season, and in some 

 stages are easily overlooked in favour of the adrenal bodies. It is therefore 

 advisable to identify the adrenal bodies first. These are a pair of small white 

 bodies, slightly triangular rather than round in outline, attached to the more 

 anterior part of the kidneys. They are closely attached to the pelvic wall 

 whereas the sexual organs are attached to membranes in the body cavity near 

 the kidneys, and if the membranes have become damaged they may easily be 

 displaced when the intestines are moved. 



The testes, the male gonads, are paired bodies lying, like the adrenal bodies, 

 on either side of the central line. In the breeding season they are large and 

 unmistakable (fig. 20a) but at other times and in immature birds they may be 

 tiny pinhead-sized objects (fig. 20b). They are usually white or cream- 

 coloured but after breeding may appear blackish. They are rounded in 

 appearance and symmetrical. When fully developed one may be larger than 

 the other (the Coucals, Centropus spp., have only the left-hand testis). 



The female ovary is usually a single organ on the left-hand side, but care 



Fig. 20. Dissection of the male (a), female (c) and immature birds (b) and (d), to show 

 position and size of the reproductive organs. 1, lungs ; 2, adrenal body ; 3, testis ; 

 4, sperm duct ; 5, kidney ; 6, cloaca ; 7, ovary ; 9, undeveloped testis ; 10, undeveloped 

 ovary. 



