Where is the wishbone in animals?

The scientific name for a wishbone is the furcula, which is Latin for ‘little fork.’

The furcula is a forked bone with two slightly curved parts that meet at the top, forming a type of V-shape.  There is a tradition that if two people each pull one side of the bone, it will snap, and the person who gets the larger part can make a wish.

The wishbone or furcula is also called the collarbone.

The wishbone is found only in birds and some dinosaurs. Birds are the only vertebrate animals (animals with a backbone) that have a fused collarbone.

The wishbone helps the bird to lift its wings during the upstroke as it flaps its wings when flying.

Bird Skeleton with the furcula (in red): furcula.png (2007), Username=Toony

Wishbone photo: The B&B Team (2019), https://bbteam.com

Photographer: Martina Nicolls

Martina Nicolls: SIMILAR BUT DIFFERENT IN THE ANIMAL KINGDOM