AKT,i9 CONCEBNING BIRDS ' TONGUES — GARDNER 17 



Order CHARADRIIFORMES 



The tongues of the Limicolae very much resemble those of the 

 rails. They usually are commensurate in length with the bill, al- 

 though in NuTnenius^ Recurvirostra amer'icana (fig. 50), and Meso- 

 scolopax horealis they lie only in the floor of the mouth and do not 

 extend far toward the tip of the bill. The last-named species has 

 an exceedingly narrow tapering organ that in the anterior portion 

 becomes almost threadlike and does not measure more than one- 

 third the length of the bill. In the rails the tip was found often 

 to be split and frayed while the sandpipers generally have a tip 

 entire. Usually the tongue is guttered or grooved but in the genera 

 mentioned above it tends to be flat. It may be very long as in Cato- 

 ptrophoTUs semipalmatus inomatus^ and the long-billed dowitcher 

 {Lim/nodrom/as griseus scolopaceus^ fig. 48) and less so the wander- 

 ing tattler, {Heteroscelus incanus, fig. 46), while it is very short in 

 the semipalmated plover {Charadrius semipalTiiatus^ fig. 60). 



Other variations are seen in Actitis macularia (fig. 54), Oxyechus 

 vociferus (fig. 58), Haematopus palliatus (fig. 61), and Ereunetes 

 pusillus (fig. 57). There is nothing unusual about this organ in 

 Oreophilus ruficollis ruficollis^ Pisohia Tninutilla, Grocethia leucop- 

 tera^ or Squatarola squatarola. In this group, as in the hawks and 

 owls, due to convergent evolution or to the fact that feeding habits 

 are alike there has developed a very close resemblence to the tongues 

 of rails and an indication of affinity when in fact it is not as real 

 as this organ would lead to believe. So close is the appearance 

 between the groups that given a single tongue one would often be 

 in doubt as to its true connection. 



The gulls have a rather broad fleshy tongue that is somewhat 

 grooved and is often forked at the tip, as illustrated by Larus heer- 

 manni (fig. 27) and L. occidentalis (fig. 28). The terns have long, 

 slender, often forked tongues {Sterna forsteri^ fig. 56) and S. antil- 

 laimm^ fig. 55). Gygis alba kittlitzi has remarkable fine baclnvardly 

 directed serrations for the anterior one-half of this organ. 



Rynchops nigra (fig 51) has a rather short, wide tongue, some- 

 what scoop shaped. 



Pigeons have flexible tongues that are grooved and posteriorly are 

 supplied with soft spines that are without resistance. These are 

 illustrated in the following figures, Zenaida vinaceoruf a (fig. 65), 

 Columba gymnophthalrria (fig. 66), HistHophaps histrionica (fig. 

 63), and Geopelia cuneata (fig. 64), while Nesopelia galapagoensis 

 is very similar. 



43316—25 3 



