Re: White meat

["T. Michael Keesey" <keesey@gmail.com>]

On 11/23/05, Phil Bigelow <bigelowp@juno.com> wrote:
>
> No, I'm not referring to a Klu Klux Klan BBQ.  I'm asking about white
> muscular tissue in avians.  Galliformes are, in general, rather poor
> fliers, yet they tend to have the largest amount of white muscular tissue
> on their breasts and wings.
>
> Why is this feature so characteristic of Galliformes and rather
> diminished in many other avian lineages?

I'm sure there's more to it than this, but I think I fair chunk of the
answer is probably, "Because people tend to like white meat." In other
words, artificial selection (although I'll take a thigh or drumstick,
myself).

Happy (American) Thanksgiving!
--
Mike Keesey
The Dinosauricon: http://dino.lm.com
Parry & Carney: http://parryandcarney.com