Mr. T. C. Eyton's Notes on Birds. 311 



The OS furcatum, coracoids and scapulae, and indeed the whole of 

 the skeleton is light and weak ; the former is much arched anteriorly ; 

 when in situ the branches are rather suddenly divided, spreading 

 very wide at their extremities ; each branch is laterally flattened on 

 its upper half; the process at the point where it approaches the 

 sternum is small and rounded. 



The coracoids are seven-tenths of an inch in length, much ex- 

 panded at their junction with the sternum, and jointly, v;ith the ex- 

 ception of that portion occupied by the manubrial process, spreading 

 over the whole breadth of its anterior margin. 



The scapulae are twelve-tenths of an inch in length, nearly straight 

 to within a short distance of their posterior extremities, where they 

 are abruptly deflected and pointed ; the internal surface is slightly 

 concave. 



The pelvis is eight- tenths of an inch in length, fourteen- tenths in 

 breadth at its posterior extremity, and five- tenths of an inch at its 

 anterior one ; on viewing it from above it appears very broad for the 

 size of the bird ; and its upper plane is slightly arched. On viewing 

 the posterior extremity from behind it presents a wide and regular arch 

 formed by the sacral vertebrae in the centre, and the posterior edges 

 of the ilium, ischium and os pubis on each side ; the points of the 

 latter bones are turned upwards at their extremities ; the posterior 

 extremity of the ischium is much expanded, and incloses on one side 

 a very large ischiadic foramen ; the obturator foramen consists of 

 an elongated slit inclosed between the ischium and os pubis, and 

 extending from immediately behind the femur to the membranous 

 junction of those bones near their posterior extremities. The whole 

 of the bones of the legs are very light and weak ; the femur is eight- 

 tenths and a half in length ; the tibia el even- tenths in length ; the 

 fibula, which is somewhat broad and flattened transversely, extends 

 for two-thirds of its length, forming a sort of keel. The tarsus mea- 

 sures six- tenths of an inch in length. The bones of the wing are the 

 strongest and most powerful of the whole skeleton ; they are however 

 short in proportion to the size of the bird, which, together with the 

 large size of the head, contributes somewhat to give the skeleton 

 rather a clumsy appearance ; the humerus is twelve-tenths of an inch 

 long; the ulnar bones measure fourteen- tenths of an inch in length, 

 and the metacarpal bones six-tenths. 



The inferior maxillary bones are united for only three-tenths of 

 an inch from their tips, and divaricate abruptly and widely ; at the 

 extremities of their rami they have two very wide and powerful 

 capsules for articulation with the os quadratum. 



The cranium is broad in proportion to its length, measuring from 

 the tip of the bill to the occiput one inch and six-tenths, — its great- 

 est diameter ; the posterior extremities of the zygomatic bones mea- 

 sure one inch. 



The occiput when viewed either laterally or from above has a 

 truncate appearance, when viewed from behind it has a quadrate 

 figure ; the articulation however of the os quadratum with the infe- 

 rior maxillary bone projects considerably beyond the lateral perpen- 



