25 



OTIN^E. 



BUSTARDS AND ALLIED SPECIES. 



Although in some families of birds there is little diver- 

 sity of size, in others a Patagonian and a Bushman, giant 

 and dwarf, stand side by side, magnitude not being a measure 

 of affinity. Some of the Otince are large and stately birds, 

 while others scarcely excel a starling or thrush. In external 

 appearance, they seem allied to the Perdicinse and the Pluvi- 

 alinse, having the plumage and colouring of the former, and 

 somewhat of the form of the latter. 



Their body is ovate, large, and not much compressed ; the 

 neck long, and rather slender ; the head of moderate size, or 

 rather small, somewhat compressed, and convex or rounded 

 above. The bill shorter than the head, moderately stout, 

 nearly straight, or considerably arched, depressed at the base, 

 compressed toward the end; the upper mandible with the 

 ridge narrow, the nasal sinuses large, and filled by a mem- 

 brane, which is feathered at the base, the edges partially 

 inflexed, the tip narrow ; the lower mandible has the angle 

 long and narrow, the edges sharp and direct, the tip narrow ; 

 the gape-line little arched, and commencing before the eyes. 

 The mouth is of moderate width, or rather narrow; the 

 tongue trigonal, fleshy, tapering ; the oesophagus rather 

 narrow ; the proventriculus bulbiform ; the stomach with 

 large muscles and dense epithelium ; the intestine of mode- 

 rate length and width ; the coeca long and obtuse. 



The nostrils are oblong, or linear, direct, slightly opercu- 

 late, nearly basal. Eyes rather large. Aperture of ear large. 



