Final answer:
The structure consisting of 80 bones, including the head and trunk, is the axial skeleton. It comprises the skull, vertebral column, thoracic cage, the hyoid bone, and ear ossicles.
Step-by-step explanation:
The axial skeleton refers to the part of the human skeleton that consists of the bones forming the head and the trunk of the body. This grouping of bones includes the skull, vertebral column, thoracic cage (consisting of the ribs and sternum), and additional bones such as the hyoid bone and the ossicles in the middle ear. Specifically, the adult axial skeleton consists of 80 bones: 22 in the skull, 24 vertebrae in the vertebral column plus the sacrum and coccyx, and the thoracic cage which is composed of 12 pairs of ribs and the sternum.
The skull itself is responsible for protecting the brain and providing the structure of the face, it includes 8 cranial bones and 14 facial bones. The vertebral column provides a flexible support structure and protection for the spinal cord, dividing into various regions such as cervical, thoracic, lumbar, sacral, and coccygeal.
Distinct from the axial skeleton is the appendicular skeleton, which comprises the bones of the limbs and includes girdle bones that anchor the limbs to the axial skeleton, amounting to a total of 126 bones in the appendicular skeleton.
Thus, when considering the structure that consists of 80 bones and includes the head and trunk, the final answer in a two line explanation would be the axial skeleton, which forms the vertical axis of the body and encompasses the skull, vertebral column, and thoracic cage.