On the Thoracic Duct and the Lumbar Lymphatic Vessel in the Fowl

Forty fowls supplied by the Breeding Station of Domestic and Jungle Fowls in Nagoya University were examined. The arrangement of the thoracic duct and lumbar lymphatic vessel was investigated in each individual fowl. A basic pattern is drawn from variation of this arrangement. The lymphatic node and the remarkable swelling of the lymphatic vessel (chylous cistern) do not appear between the thoracic duct and the lumbar lymphatic vessel, so that the two lymphatic vessels are observed as a continuous duct, moreover, it makes up a pair of (right and left) large lymphatic trunks which are in communication with each other by several transverse anastomoses. This arrangement shows so-called ladder-form pattern. The thoracic duct always opens into the cranial caval vein and the jugular lymphatic vessel opens into either thoracic duct or cranial caval vein or jugular vein. The subclavian lymphatic vessel opens into either thoracic duct or jugular lymphatic vessel.