Anatomical and Histological Study of the Pecten Oculi in Two Species of Birds (Milvus migrans and Alectoris barbara)

Abstract

Theis study was conducted on pecten oculi anatomy and histology of the ocular body of the eye in Milvus migrans and Alectoris barbara. The pecten oculi in both types was vaned type and made up of primary, secondary and few tertiary lamellae. Milvus migrans and Alectoris Barbara, however, had pleated-type pecten oculi that displayed folded structure.The number of pleats of the pectens was 12 and 17 in Milvus migrans and Alectoris barbara, respectively. It was situated on the ventral surface of the eye and extends into the vitreous body. Histological sections showed that the demonstrated pecten oculi folds in the Milvus migrans and Alectoris barbara were composed of large number of capillaries and large blood vessels. The capillaries are surrounded by thick basal membrane with many pigmented cells distributed around the capillaries. They were low in Milvus migrans compared to the Alectoris barbara.