Why Birds Have Hollow Bones

Birds have evolved a sophisticated anatomy that allows them to launch themselves into the air and stay there with remarkable ease. There are a lot of different factors at play that help birds to do this; most birds have disproportionally muscular breasts, for example supported by a very large breast bone to help them

Birds have evolved a sophisticated anatomy that allows them to launch themselves into the air and stay there with remarkable ease. There are a lot of different factors at play that help birds to do this; most birds have disproportionally muscular breasts, for example — supported by a very large breast bone — to help them flap their wings. The stresses and strains required to power a bird's feathered appendages also require a super-strong heart as well as extra oxygen to keep it all running — and this is where the hollow bones come in.

A bird's bones are specially aerated and actually form part of the lung system by increasing a bird's oxygen-carrying capacity. According to Dr. Matt Wedel from the University of California Berkley, tubes from a bird's air sacs mingle with the bird's skeleton as they grow, creating their characteristic cavern-like appearance.

Compared to mammals, birds have a relatively complicated respiratory system with two sets of air sacs (one set at the front and one at the back), and they can even take in air when they exhale. According to Wedel birds have inherited this clever pneumatic system from their scaley ancestors, the dinosaurs — some of which also had hollow bones.

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