The manus (

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

for '' hand'', plural manus) is the zoological term for the distal portion of the forelimb of an animal. In tetrapods, it is the part of the pentadactyl limb that includes the metacarpals and digits ( phalanges). During evolution, it has taken many forms and served a variety of functions. It can be represented by the hand of primates, the lower front limb of hoofed animals or the forepaw and is represented in the wing of

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class (biology), class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the Oviparity, laying of Eggshell, hard-shelled eggs, a high Metabolism, metabolic rate, a fou ...

s, bats and prehistoric flying reptiles ( pterosaurs), the flipper of marine

mammal A mammal () is a vertebrate animal of the Class (biology), class Mammalia (). Mammals are characterised by the presence of milk-producing mammary glands for feeding their young, a broad neocortex region of the brain, fur or hair, and three ...

s and the 'paddle' of extinct marine

reptile Reptiles, as commonly defined, are a group of tetrapods with an ectothermic metabolism and Amniotic egg, amniotic development. Living traditional reptiles comprise four Order (biology), orders: Testudines, Crocodilia, Squamata, and Rhynchocepha ...

s, such as plesiosaurs and ichthyosaurs. In cephalopods, the ''manus'' is the end, broader part of a tentacle, and its suckers are often larger and arranged differently from those on the other arms.

References

Animal anatomy Dinosaur anatomy Cephalopod zootomy Upper limb anatomy {{animal-anatomy-stub

See also

References