toe
Quick Summary
A toe is one of the terminal members of the vertebrate foot, or the fore end of a foot or hoof. In anatomy, digits, which include fingers and toes, are the skeletal structures of the digits, composed of bones called phalanges. The tips of toes are typically protected by keratinous coverings like nails.12
In humans, the toes are shorter and less flexible than fingers, adapted for bipedal locomotion. The bones of the toes, the phalanges, are relatively large at their bases but thinner in their shafts compared to finger phalanges.3
A common toe deformity is hammertoe, where a toe bends downward at the middle joint, resembling a hammer. Another injury is turf toe, a sprain of the big toe's metatarsophalangeal joint, often caused by playing on artificial turf in flexible shoes.45
Ask Britannica AI about this topic
Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.
artiodactylLimb adaptations for fast runningPigs have four toes on each foot, but only two of them touch the ground. Their limbs are short and not very advanced. Peccaries have lost the outer accessory hind hoof in the back leg. All four toes of each foot of hippopotamuses touch the ground, and the…
Read MorePigs have four toes on each foot, but only two of them touch the ground. Their limbs are short and not very advanced. Peccaries have lost the outer accessory hind hoof in the back leg. All four toes of each foot of hippopotamuses touch the ground, and the…
Read More
camelNatural history…is borne on two large toes that spread apart to keep the animal from sinking into the sand. Dromedaries have a soft wide-spreading pad for walking on sand; Bactrian camels have a firmer foot. Like the giraffe’s, the camel’s gait is a pace, with both legs on a side moving…
Read More…is borne on two large toes that spread apart to keep the animal from sinking into the sand. Dromedaries have a soft wide-spreading pad for walking on sand; Bactrian camels have a firmer foot. Like the giraffe’s, the camel’s gait is a pace, with both legs on a side moving…
Read More
ciconiiformGeneral characteristicsLong legs and toes are often an adaptation for wading. The toes of herons are long and flexible, with just a hint of webbing for walking or standing on soft ground, the functional hind toe aiding in perching. The hind toe of storks and ibis is reduced and…
Read MoreLong legs and toes are often an adaptation for wading. The toes of herons are long and flexible, with just a hint of webbing for walking or standing on soft ground, the functional hind toe aiding in perching. The hind toe of storks and ibis is reduced and…
Read More
casuariiformForm and function…birds, casuariiforms have only three toes, the hind toe having been lost. The inner toe of cassowaries is armed with an elongated, daggerlike claw, making the foot a formidable weapon in kicking.
Read More…birds, casuariiforms have only three toes, the hind toe having been lost. The inner toe of cassowaries is armed with an elongated, daggerlike claw, making the foot a formidable weapon in kicking.
Read More
galliformForm and functionThe hind toe is larger and more functional in groups, such as the cracids, that spend much time in trees; it is smaller in the more terrestrial groups, but in none has it been lost, as it has in terrestrial birds of some other orders.
Read MoreThe hind toe is larger and more functional in groups, such as the cracids, that spend much time in trees; it is smaller in the more terrestrial groups, but in none has it been lost, as it has in terrestrial birds of some other orders.
Read More
gruiformForm and functionThe toes vary greatly—in the finfoots and coots they are lobed for swimming, in rails and the limpkin they are long and slender for walking on lily pads and other aquatic vegetation, and in bustards and seriemas they are short for running on hard surfaces. The…
Read MoreThe toes vary greatly—in the finfoots and coots they are lobed for swimming, in rails and the limpkin they are long and slender for walking on lily pads and other aquatic vegetation, and in bustards and seriemas they are short for running on hard surfaces. The…
Read More
lizardLocomotion and limb adaptationsMany modifications of the toes occur in lizards. Some desert geckos, the iguanid Uma, and the lacertid Acanthodactylus have fringes on the toes that provide increased surface area, preventing the lizard from sinking into loose desert sand. Arboreal geckos and anoles (Anolis) have lamellae (fine plates) on the undersides…
Read MoreMany modifications of the toes occur in lizards. Some desert geckos, the iguanid Uma, and the lacertid Acanthodactylus have fringes on the toes that provide increased surface area, preventing the lizard from sinking into loose desert sand. Arboreal geckos and anoles (Anolis) have lamellae (fine plates) on the undersides…
Read More
owlForm and functionThe legs and toes are of medium length and exceptionally strong for the size of the bird. Each toe is provided with a needle-sharp, curved talon. The outer toe points rearward when perching and is normally directed outward or backward in taking prey, providing the maximum possible toe…
Read MoreThe legs and toes are of medium length and exceptionally strong for the size of the bird. Each toe is provided with a needle-sharp, curved talon. The outer toe points rearward when perching and is normally directed outward or backward in taking prey, providing the maximum possible toe…
Read More
piciformForm and function…the order is the yoke-toed (zygodactylous) foot in which the outer toe (toe IV) as well as the hind toe (I) points to the rear. This was long considered an adaptation to climbing or perching on the vertical trunks of trees, but recent studies have shown that this type…
Read More…the order is the yoke-toed (zygodactylous) foot in which the outer toe (toe IV) as well as the hind toe (I) points to the rear. This was long considered an adaptation to climbing or perching on the vertical trunks of trees, but recent studies have shown that this type…
Read More