REPORT ON THE ANATOMY OF THE PETRELS. 5 



that we are indebted for nearly cmr whole existing knowledge of the important subject of 

 the pterylosis of birds. In his classical, though posthumous, Pterylographie the Nasutse 

 seu Tubinares form the second group of his order Natatores, and the pterylosis of the group 

 is described at some length. Further details of Nitzsch's observations are recorded below 

 (infra, p. 14) in the space devoted to the consideration of the pterylographical characters 

 of these birds. So far as I am aware nothing else was contributed by Nitzsch to our 

 knowledge of this group. 



In the same year as that in which the Pterylographie appeared, Eudolph Wagner, a 

 disciple of Nitzsch's, contributed to the tenth volume of Naumann's Vogel Deutschlands 1 

 some remarks on the anatomical structure of three genera of Tubinares included in that 

 work, namely, Procellaria, Fulmarus, and Puffinus. These consisted of short notes on the 

 skeleton and the thoracic and abdominal viscera, and, as far as they go, are accurate 

 enough. The general similarity in structure of the members of this group examined, as 

 well as of Diomedea, is noted, as well as many points of resemblance to the Laridse, and 

 particularly Lestris. 



In the year 1844 MM. Hombron and Jacquinot communicated to the Academy of 

 Sciences in Paris a paper entitled " Eemarques sur quelques points de l'anatomie et de la 

 physiologie des Procellaridees, et essai d'une nouvelle classification de ces oiseaux." 

 An abstract, by the authors, is pubHshed in the Comptes Eendus for that year. 2 The 

 material for their paper was obtained, I may remark, during the expedition of the French 

 ships "Astrolabe" and " Zelee," commonly known as the Voyage au Pole Sud. Basing 

 their classification on the form and structure of the beak, palate, and tongue, they 

 divide up the group as follows : — 



1. Borders of mandibles excavated by a longitudinal furrow dividing them into 

 inner and outer cutting surfaces. Tongue small, one-third the length of beak, sagittate, 

 posteriorly and laterally denticulate. 



Three genera — Diomedea ; Puffinus, subdivided into Puffinus proper (anglorum, 

 obscurus,fidiginosus'\, &c.) andPrio/inus (cinereus, aquinoctialis, arcticusV); and Thalassi- 

 droma (pelagica, leachii \_^leucorrhoa~\, oceanica, fregetta [= grallaria], marina. 



2. Edges of upper mandible with transverse lamellae. Tongue as long as the beak, 

 large and thick, only free at the apex. 



One genus, Prion, divided into five sub -genera — Prion s.s., Daption, Fulmarus, Ossi- 

 fraga, and Priocella (for Priocella gamoti= Thalassceca glacialoides of this paper). 



3. Mandibles simple, with no double cutting-edges or transverse lamelke, but with two 

 slight, elongated " teeth " ; palate smooth or nearly so ; tongue of intermediate length. 



One genus, Procellaria, separated into two groups, one with the beak quite short 

 (nivea, desolata, brevirostris), the other with it long (antarctica, lessoni, hcesitata, Forst. 

 [1 = Adamastor cinereus] ). 



1 hoc. cit., pp. 555-656, 587-588, 614-617. - Loc. cit, torn, xviii. pp. 353-358. 



