338 



PASSER. SPARROW. 



Bill shortish, straight, direct, conical, rather acute, subjDen- 

 tagonal and nearly as broad as deep at the base : upper man- 

 dible with the dorsal outline declinate and slightly arched, the 

 ridge narrow but obtuse, the sides much rounded, the edges 

 sharp and inflected, but overlapping, with an obsolete notch or 

 slight sinus close to the tip ; lower mandible somewhat smaller, 

 with the angle short, broad, and rounded, the dorsal line very 

 slightly convex, the ridge broad, the sides much rounded, the 

 edges sharp and inflected. 



^louth rather narrow ; both mandibles deeply concave, the 

 upper with a medial prominent line, two smaller lateral lines, 

 and four grooves. Aperture of the posterior nares linear, and 

 wdth that of the glottis margined with acute papillae. Tongue 

 sagittate, fleshy, sub ulato -lanceolate, involute, so as to be grooved 

 above, the tip very slightly bifid. CEsophagus, PL VIII, Fig. 

 1, a, 6, c", d^ when distended forming a large crop, ^, on the 

 middle of the neck, afterwards narrow^ and of nearly uniform 

 diameter, c ; proventriculus, ^, bulbiform, and furnished all 

 round with numerous cylindrical glandules. Gizzard, ^, /, o', /?, 

 roundish, compressed, with two very strong lateral muscles, e, 

 /, having radiated tendons, and a lower prominent muscle, g ; 

 its cuticular lining dense, tough, and longitudinally rugous. 

 Intestine, ^, i^ j^ A-, /, w, w, of moderate length, rather wide, 

 •of nearly equal diameter throughout, with two very small, 

 cylindrical, adnate coeca, /, near its extremity ; rectum, /, m, ii, 

 short, with an elliptical enlargement. 



Nostrils broadly elliptical, oblique, basal, in the fore part of 



