What is "uropygial gland"

Uropygial \U`ro*pyg"i*al\, a. [See Uropygium.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the uropygium, or prominence at the base of the tail feathers, in birds.

Uropygial gland, a peculiar sebaceous gland at the base of the tail feathers in most birds. It secretes an oily fluid which is spread over the feathers by preening.

n. A secretory organ, at the base of a bird's tail, that secretes the oil used in preening.

n. oil-secreting gland situated at the base of the tail in most birds [syn: preen gland]

The uropygial gland, informally known as the preen gland or the oil gland, is a bilobate sebaceous gland possessed by the majority of birds. It is located dorsally at the base of the tail (between the fourth caudal vertebrae and the pygostyle) and is greatly variable in both shape and size. In some species, the opening of the gland has a small tuft of feathers to provide a wick for the preen oil (see below). It is a holocrine gland enclosed in a connective tissue capsule made up of glandular acini that deposit their oil secretion into a common collector tube ending in a variable number of pores (openings), most usually two. Each lobe has a central cavity that collects the secretion from tubules arranged radially around the cavity. The gland secretion is conveyed to the surface via ducts that, in most species, open at the top of a papilla (nipple-like structure).