the foot bone, between the intratarsal (ankle) joint and the bases of the toes; in birds consisting of the distal tarsal bones (the heel in humans) fused together with the metatarsal bones (the foot bones down to the toes); can be mistaken for a leg bone because it is longer than a human foot (see tibiotarsus); in Bald Eagles the lower portion of the tarsometatarsus is unfeathered; sometimes called simply the tarsus or the metatarsus; photo © Royal BC Museum with labels added