Crop (anatomy) Crop (anatomy) A crop (sometimes also called a croup or a craw, or ingluvies) is a thin-walled expanded portion of the alimentary tract used for the storage of food prior to digestion. This anatomical structure is found in a wide variety of animals. It has been found in birds, and in invertebrate animals including gastropods (snails and slugs), earthworms, leeches, and insects. Cropping is used by bees to temporarily store nectar of flowers. When bees "suck" nectar, it is stored in their crops. In a bird's digestive system, the crop is an expanded, muscular pouch near the gullet or throat.
Origin of birds was required to feed the young dinosaur, possibly the adult dinosaur regurgitated food into the young dinosaur's mouth ("see" altricial). This behaviour is seen in numerous bird species; parent birds regurgitate food into the hatchling's mouth. Both birds and dinosaurs use gizzard stones. These stones are swallowed by animals to aid digestion and break down food and hard fibres once they enter the stomach. When found in association with fossils, gizzard stones are called gastroliths. Gizzard stones are also found in some fish (mullets, mud shad, and the gillaroo, a type of trout) and in crocodiles. On several occasions, the