DOI: 10.5061/dryad.61dr5
title: Data from: Avian cephalic vascular anatomy, sites of thermal exchange, and the rete ophthalmicum

description: The general anatomy of avian cephalic blood vessels is well known and
 there are published details of their role in physiological
 thermoregulation. Unfortunately, the finer details of vascular pathways to
 and from sites of thermal exchange are not well known. Additionally, the
 role of the rete ophthalmicum (RO), a vascular heat exchanger in the
 temporal region, has been investigated in terms of brain temperature
 regulation, yet only the arteries have received substantial attention.
 Without anatomical details of both the arterial and venous pathways, the
 role of blood vessels in physiological thermoregulation is incomplete.
 Cephalic vascular anatomy of multiple avian taxa was investigated using a
 differential-contrast, dual-vascular injection technique and
 high-resolution X-ray microcomputed tomography. Sites of thermal exchange
 (oral, nasal, and orbital regions) and the RO were given special attention
 due to their known roles in cephalic thermoregulation. Blood vessels to
 and from sites of thermal exchange were investigated to detect conserved
 vascular patterns and their ability to deliver cooled blood to the RO and
 dural venous sinus. Sites of thermal exchange were supplied by arteries
 directly and through collateral pathways. Veins were found to offer
 multiple pathways that could influence the temperature of neurosensory
 tissues, as well as pathways that would bypass neurosensory tissues. These
 results question the paradigm that arterial blood from the RO is the
 primary method of brain cooling in birds. A shift in the primary role of
 the RO from brain cooling to regulating and maintaining the temperature of
 the avian eye should be further investigated.
description: CT scan data of wild
 turkey, Meleagris gallopavo OUVC 10599This zip file contains
 DICOM images from an x-ray microcomputed tomography (µCT) scan of an
 injected Meleagris gallopavo (OUVC 10599). The arteries and veins were
 injected with a latex and barium solution and scanned on a GE eXplore
 Locus in vivo Small Animal MicroCT scanner (90µm slice thickness at 80kV
 and 450 µA) at the Ohio University µCT Scanning
 Facility.OhioU_WitmerLab_Meleagris-gallopavo_OUVC_10599_DCDVI.zipCT scan data of wild turkey, Meleagris gallopavo OUVC 10610This zip file contains DICOM images from an x-ray microcomputed tomography (µCT) scan of an injected Meleagris gallopavo (OUVC 10610). The arteries and veins were injected with a latex and barium solution and scanned on a GE eXplore Locus in vivo Small Animal MicroCT scanner (90µm slice thickness at 80kV and 450 µA) at the Ohio University µCT Scanning Facility.OhioU_WitmerLab_Meleagris-gallopavo_OUVC_10610_DCDVI.zipCT scan data of wild double-crested cormorant, Phalacrocorax auritus OUVC 10644This zip file contains DICOM images from an x-ray microcomputed tomography (µCT) scan of an injected Phalacrocorax auritus (OUVC 10644). The veins were injected with a latex and barium solution and scanned on a GE eXplore Locus in vivo Small Animal MicroCT scanner (90µm slice thickness at 80kV and 450 µA) at the Ohio University µCT Scanning Facility.OhioU_WitmerLab_Phalacocorax_auritus_OUVC_10644_venous_injection.zipCT scan data of wild double-crested cormorant, Phalacrocorax auritus OUVC 10645This zip file contains DICOM images from an x-ray microcomputed tomography (µCT) scan of an injected Phalacrocorax auritus (OUVC 10645). The arteries were injected with a latex and barium solution and scanned on a GE eXplore Locus in vivo Small Animal MicroCT scanner (90µm slice thickness at 80kV and 450 µA) at the Ohio University µCT Scanning Facility.OhioU_WitmerLab_Phalacocorax_auritus_OUVC_10645_arterial_injection.zip3D-PDF of wild turkey, Meleagris gallopavoPorter&Witmer_2016_Turkey_3D-PDF.pdf