232 THE SALAMANDER 



as the pelvic veins. The Dipnoi also possess an abdominal vein, but 

 in these animals the anterior connexion is also retained. Now in 

 Salamandra the anterior epigastric veins are connected by a short 

 common stem with the sinus venosus post-caval junction, and pos- 

 teriorly with the abdominal vein, by means of the median epigastric. 

 It seems therefore not unreasonable to suppose that they represent 

 the primitive vessels connecting the abdominal vein with the sinus 

 venosus, a connexion which is in the process of being replaced by the 

 lateral connexions with the VV. axillares, while their anterior junction 

 with the heart has become secondarily associated with the posterior 

 end of the sinus venosus rather than with the ductus Cuvieri. 



(b) V, lateralis (v.l.) or V. cutanea magna (partim) (Bethge). The 

 two synonyms for this vessel are fairly uniformly distributed through- 

 out the literature, but the former has been chosen as it is not by any 

 means a purely cutaneous vein, but receives numerous factors from 

 the muscles of the body-wall also. It was first described by Bethge 

 in 1898. 



The lateral vein arises at the side of the tail, a little posterior to the 

 cloaca, immediately beneath the skin, and passes right along the body 

 in the sulcus lateralis between the dorsal and ventral body-muscles to 

 a point just anterior to the third myoseptum. On its way it drains both 

 the skin and the muscles of the lateral body-wall. An important anas- 

 tomosis with the V. iliaca transversa occurs in the pelvic region (see 

 p. 243), and sometimes one with the V. pelvica also. It is in com- 

 munication with the lymphatic system by means of the lateral lymph 

 hearts which occur at each myoseptum (see also pp. 253, 259). The 

 vessel has a tendency to sink into the sulcus lateralis and to become 

 partly hidden by the muscles. At the anterior end it passes inwards, 

 deep to the M. dorsalis humeralis, and then turns sharply ventralwards 

 just anterior to the third rib, passing deep to the portion of the M. 

 thoraci-scapularis arising therefrom. At this point a vessel is re- 

 ceived from the M. thoraci-scapularis and the anterior body-muscles 

 beneath the supra-scapula. This portion of the vein is called the 

 cervical portion of the V. cutanea magna by Osawa, but since it has 

 no connexion with the skin, and is a purely muscular vein, it would 

 seem to be a misnomer. At the posterior border of the glenoid 

 cavity it is joined by a cutaneous vein from the skin covering the M. 

 dorsalis humeralis, the V. cutanea dorsalis scapulae -posterior (v.cut.d. 

 sc.p.) and then almost immediately unites with the lateral branch of 

 the V. epigastrica anterior to form the V. axillaris (v. ax.). At this 

 point an anastomosis with the V. brachialis medialis may occur, but 

 is not constant. At the posterior border of the scapula the V. dorsalis 



