cloaca

(noun)

the common duct in fish, reptiles, birds, and some primitive mammals that serves as the anus as well as the genital opening

Related Terms

  • endothermic
  • pneumatic
  • gonad
  • spermatheca
  • furcula
  • coelom

Examples of cloaca in the following topics:

  • The Evolution of Reproduction

    • Non-mammals, such as birds and reptiles, have a common body opening, called a cloaca, for the digestive, excretory, and reproductive systems.
    • Coupling between birds usually involves positioning the cloaca openings opposite each other for transfer of sperm.
    • During reproduction, sperm transfer from the male to the female ranges from releasing the sperm into the watery environment for external fertilization, to the joining of cloaca in birds, to the development of a penis for direct delivery into the female's vagina in mammals.
  • Living Mammals

    • All monotremes possess a cloaca which serves as the opening for the intestinal, reproductive, and urinary tracts.
  • Vertebrate Digestive Systems

    • Most of the chemical digestion and absorption happens in the intestine, while the waste is excreted through the cloaca.
    • This waste is excreted through an opening called the cloaca.
  • Characteristics of Birds

    • Birds possess a cloaca: a structure that allows water to be reabsorbed from waste back into the bloodstream.
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