Chicken Wing Dissection Lab
Name:
Purpose and Expectations
By the end of this lab, you will be expected to:
 identify and describe the various types of tissues visible in a chicken wing
 distinguish between a tendon and ligament in terms of both structure and function
 observe how muscle tissue behaves through flexion and extension
 demonstrate the basic skills necessary to perform a responsible and respectful dissection
Equipment and materials
disposable gloves
Styrofoam plate
probe
pencil
dissecting scissors
pencil crayons
forceps
fresh chicken wing
Safety
 You are NOT using a scalpel for this dissection
 Any cuts should be flushed with water immediately and reported to the teacher
 Hands and surfaces must be thoroughly washed to prevent Salmonella infection
Group Tasks:
There are three jobs for this lab listed below with their responsibilities. Assign a job to each individual.
Coordinator: leader of the group; obtains the materials; ensures equipment is put away properly according to
instructions; directs the dissection by reading the procedure.
Dissector: performs the dissection and refers to coordinator for instructions; only s/he wears the gloves;
washes the equipment when the dissection is complete.
Recorder: records all observations and works with coordinator to ensure the lab performance expectations
are being met; produces the coloured and labeled diagram.
Procedure:
1. The dissector obtains Styrofoam plate and obtains a chicken on it. Observe the external features of the
chicken wing and identify any of the four types of tissues visible before the dissection.
Remove the skin from the upper wing, and lower wing but NOT the wing tip
2. At the end of the upper wing (Figure 1, shown on p. 102 of your textbook), slip the tip of the dissecting
scissors between the skin and the muscles underneath. Make a small incision with the scissors, careful
to only cut the skin and not the muscle underneath. Using the forceps, lift one side of the cut skin.
Remove any tissue underneath with the sharp end of the probe or with the blade of the scissors. The
purpose here is to CLEANLY separate the skin from the muscle and bone underneath. Remove and
cut away the skin necessary to make the muscles and bones visible.
3. Fat: As you remove the skin, look for whitish yellowish fat tissue (just under the skin in places).
4. Muscle: Examine the muscle tissue; describe its appearance and texture. The recorder should draw in
the visible muscles on the diagram provided making sure to draw the connections of the muscle to the
bone. The muscles should be coloured according to the legend provided on the diagram.
5. Tendon: Locate and identify a tendon on the chicken wing. Make sure to draw and label at least two
tendons on your diagram. The tendons should be coloured according to the legend provided on the
diagram.
6. Ligament: Locate and identify a ligament on the chicken wing. Make sure to draw and label at least one
ligament on your diagram. The ligament should be coloured according to the legend provided on the
diagram.
7. Cartilage: Locate and identify cartilage on the chicken wing (generally, a shiny white covering of a joint
surface). Make sure to draw and label at least one area with cartilage on the chicken wing. The cartilage
should be coloured according to the legend provided on the diagram.
8. Flexing and Extending: Pick up the chicken wing and hold it horizontally above the pan. Using the
probe, pull on a muscle in the lower (larger) portion of the wing and observe the resulting movement.
Bend the joints of the chicken wing and observe how the muscles behave to accommodate the movement.
Find a pair of opposable muscles. Experiment by pulling on various muscles to see what muscle must
contract and what must relax for extension (straightening the wing) and which must contract and relax for
flexion (bending the wing)
Clean up and Disposal: Proper cleaning and disposal is important to avoid Contamination hazards.
DISSECTOR MUST KEEP GLOVES ON UNTIL FINISHED PERFORMING CHICKEN DISPOSAL AND
INSTRUMENT CLEAN UP PROCEDURES ARE FINISHED
1. Chicken Disposal:
Throw the plate and chicken parts away in the designated garbage bag (not the regular class room garbage)
2. Instruments: remove chicken bits from instruments carefully. Soak instruments in bleach solution for
10 minutes. Then retrieve and wash in soapy water then rinse in water bath. Dry very thoroughly and return
to the teacher.
3. Hands:
Dissector: remove latex gloves (put in chicken garbage).
Everyone: Wash hands with hand soap (not in the instruments bath)- Sing “Twinkle Twinkle Little
Star” (in your head, once through) while you rub your soapy hands together to ensure proper
removal of bacteria.
Evaluation:
Each group needs to submit a summary of observations. There are 2 options for this summary:
a) It may be hand written on the sheet provided, submitted at the end of class. (Teacher will photocopy and
group members can pick up their copy at the end of the day on the door of her office (rm 105), or take a
picture of the summary with a camera-phone and e-mail a copy to members.
b) Done electronically with school laptops. Pictures of the chicken wing structures may be taken with
student’s cameras and embedded in the summary. These may be submitted electronically to the teacher and
e-mailed to group members.
There will be a visual “Pin Quiz” next class on this dissection.
“Pin Quiz”:
You need to be able to identify parts (eg. Ligaments, cartilage, etc…), understand how their structure relates
to their functions, classify what type of tissue composes various parts of the wing, and answer any general
questions that involve the musculoskeletal system and this dissection activity.
There are quite a few You-tube videos available on the chicken wing dissection. The ones by
MrAlvaricoScience and MrsSthestudyoflife are particularly good for showing the various parts. Watching
these would be helpful to help you recognize the parts.
Chicken Wing Labeled Diagram
Name:
Name:
Name:
Following the example, Complete the following chart.
Picture (optional or
colour in diagram on
other side)
Structure-Type
of tissue
skin-epithelial
fat-
muscle-
tendon-
ligament-
cartilage-
Location
Appearance and texture
Function
covers the surface of the
chicken wing
pinkish-white in colour; soft
and pliable texture; has
bumpy texture where feathers
likely protruded;
protects sensitive tissue
underneath; prevents water
loss; prevents infection of
surface bacteria; insulates
tissue