This document provides instructions for dissecting a chicken wing to observe and identify its bones, muscles, tendons, ligaments, cartilage, skin, and fat. It describes the external structures of the wing and its major parts. The procedure involves carefully cutting and removing the skin to expose the underlying tissues before photographing and labeling specific structures like the tendon, ligament, and cartilage. Students are asked questions about the functions of these structures and advised to clean up properly and wash hands after the dissection.

1. Chicken Wing Dissection

2. Background
Certain principles of muscle function help us to
understand bone-muscle relationships. First, skeletal
muscle contracts only if it is stimulated by the
nervous system. Second, skeletal muscles usually
produce movements by pulling on bones across
joints. The bones serve as levers and the joints
serve as fulcrums. Third, muscles usually lie next to
the bones they move. And,finally,muscles usually act
in groups.

3. Materials
Gather dissection material:
tray, scissors, chicken wing
and probes.

4. Procedure
Step 1
• Carefully extend the wing to find out how many major
parts it has.
• Include a photo of the external structure.
Label: upper arm, elbow, lower arm, and hand.
(wing tip).

5. Procedure Step 2
Use scissors to cut the skin as shown .
Try not to cut through the muscles located beneath the
skin

6. Procedure Step 3
Remove as much skin from the thickest
part of the wing as possible, exposing
the underlying muscle
Observe the muscle. The muscles are
bundles of pale pink tissue that
surround the bone.

7. Procedure Step 4
• Photograph any yellow tissue found in
small clumps on the inside of the skin.
This is a type of connective tissue
called fat.

8. Procedure step 5
• Remove any remaining skin from the
elbow joint.
• Locate, and label a tendon. Tendons
are shiny white tissues at the ends of
the muscles that attach muscles to
bones.

9. Procedure step 6
• Locate, and label a ligament. Ligaments are shiny white tissue
at the ends of bone.

10. Procedure step 7
• Locate, photograph and label
cartilage. Cartilage is the
slippery shiny white tissue at
the ends of bone.

11. Procedure step 8
• Once you have identified the
following parts: skin, muscle,
tendon, ligament, cartilage and
bone, call your instructor over
for a group oral quiz and initials.

12. Procedure step 9 Clean UP!!!
• Throw away all chicken wing
parts into the designated
container.
• Clean dissection tools and
place into beaker. Stack tray
next to beaker.
Wash your hands thoroughly
with soap and water.

13. Your own reading/research
Use information from leaflets, newspapers,
books and the internet to find out the
following:
• What is salmoneliosis?
• How do people catch Salmonella?
• What can a person do to prevent this illness?

14. Questions: (hint hint!
write them in your
notebook!!!)
1. What function is performed by ligaments?_________________________________________
What is the function of a tendon? ________________________________________________
2. What is more proximal, the insertion or the origin for the attachment of the muscles in the chicken wing?
3. What tissue is referred to when one speaks of the “meat” of the chicken?
4. Name the two main types of movement that occur when a wing is raised and lowered in flight.
5. What bone in the wing is connected to the chicken’s body at the shoulder? ____________________
6. Name the two bones found in the forearm of the wing. ________________ _____________________
7. What type of joint connects the wing to the body? _______________________________________
8. What type of joint moves the wing at the elbow?
9. The muscle you observed is classified as what type of muscle tissue? ____________________________
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