The architecture of the kidney of birds (and also reptiles) is, unlike in mammalians, mainly determined by the organization of the blood vascular system. Besides arterial supply and venous drainage, the renal portal system forms a main structural component. While the latter was often regarded as a “primitive” feature in the literature, morphological and physiological data reveal its great functional importance.

Microvascular corrosion casts studied in the scanning electron microscope permit the visualization of minute vessels, retaining their 3D-arrangement. Additionally, when compared with graphical reconstructions of serial sections, this method avoids several inherent artifacts like fixation and dehydration shrinkage as well as the compression of the object by the sectioning blade. Most of the studies on avian kidneys with this technique used the domestic chicken as a model. In order to provide additional material for comparative and functional studies, data on the intrarenal vascular structure of other species are required.