Avisauridae leg formed by fused metatarsals (the bones which comprise the foot in humans). As a result, members of this family are distinguished from other enantiornitheans exclusively by features of the tarsometatarsal and pedal phalanges (toe bones). Unlike in some prehistoric birds, avisaurid tarsometatarsals were not completely fused, with the distal (outer) parts of the metatarsals being separate from each other. The proximal (near) half of metatarsal III (the long bone in the middle of the tarsometatarsus) is convex from the front. The inside edge of this bone's trochlea (toe joint) has a bony tab which points downward, known as a
Metacarpophalangeal joint Metacarpophalangeal joint The metacarpophalangeal joints (MCP) are situated between the metacarpal bones and the proximal phalanges of the digits. These joints are of the condyloid kind, formed by the reception of the rounded heads of the metacarpal bones into shallow cavities on the proximal ends of the proximal phalanges. Being condyloid, they allow the movements of flexion, extension, abduction, adduction and circumduction at the joint. Each joint has: The dorsal surfaces of these joints are covered by the expansions of the Extensor tendons, together with some loose areolar tissue which connects the deep surfaces of the tendons to the bones.