Anatomically Correct with Laureness-CLOACal Musings

Don't stand underneath me! I splat!

I figured since my first entry on the Birdsong blog was technically about nature (Isabella Rossellini’s “Green Porno”) that for my comeback post (yes guys, it’s been awhile) I should return to my roots. This blog after all is inspired by birds (in a way), mostly their songs, so why shouldn’t we learn more about them? AND what better place to start then the glorious multi-purpose orifice indigenous to our avian friends,the CLOACA!

Talk about multi-tasking, the cloaca is a multi-purpose opening in birds, amphibians, reptiles-certain marsupials and mammals. That’s three-in-one!

A few facts about CLOACA:

-The word, which is Latin in origin, means sewer

-Birds poop, pee, and reproduce through this opening

-Bird aficionados refer to the cloaca as the vent, a verb meaning “to defecate.”

Next time you proclaim, “I’m venting” or “I need to vent” think twice, especially if you’re present at your local Audubon Society Chapter meeting.

If you’re planning on visiting Rome, don’t forgot to see the Cloaca Maxima, one of the largest sewers ever created.

Cloaca Maxima