PALUDICOLJL: MARSH BIRDS. 845 



be ])resently specified, Pahuliculine birds corresi)on(l to Huxley's Geranomorphee; palate scbi- 

 zoijnathous ; nasals schizurhinal iu the Crane type, holorhinal in the Rail type ; angle of man- 

 dible truncate ; no basipterygoids ; sternum long and narrow, entire or single-notched behind; 

 carotids two; cfeca two; no pulviplumes; classificatory muscles of the thigh too variable for 

 utility ; connection or relations with Limicolce through Otididce, with Herodiones through Eurij- 

 pijgidce; with Anseres through AnhimidoE; and probably with Raptores through Cariamidce. 



The character of this group may be best developed by analyzing its contents; and in the 

 ]>rocess of so doing we shall find it much easier to see how the several families difi'er than how 

 they agree witii (me another. It will also apj)ear that they difi'er by different ilegrees of unlike- 

 uess, and heni^e that certain suborders or superfamilies of Puludicolee must be recognized. 



1. Fam. Otidid^. Bustards are an important, well-defined, and circumscribed family of Old World birds, consist- 

 ing of 12 genera and upward of 30 species. They are the inosculaut group by which the present order is linked with 

 Limicokp, having decided relationships with Thick-knees (tK'f/u/ienijHie; seep. 7G7). Such combination of characters 

 has caused their alternate reference to each order ; but the balance of evidence is in favor of their position under Palu- 

 dicoke, and the sum of their peculiarities warrants the recognition of a suborder Otides. Thus, the palate is schizogna- 

 thous, but the nasals are liolorhinal ; no basipterygoids; cervical vertebrie KI-IS; sternum double-notched on each side 

 of its posterior border : long c;tca present ; carotid single or double ; no oil-gland ; no intrinsic syringeal muscles ; 

 ambiens present, but not femorocaudal (formula normally B X Y) ; plumage aftersliafted ; wing aqulntocubital ; rec- 

 trices l(!-'.;o ; the stout feet 3-toed, lacking hallux, with reticulated tarsi, and scutellations on top of toes ; bill short and 

 stout, somewhat as in gallinaceous birds, with pervious nostrils reached by frontal antise. These birds inhabit open 

 places, where they run with velocity, and also fly well ; they nest on the ground, lay colored eggs, and the chicks are ni- 

 difugous. They are mostly stout birds, some as big as a Turkey, others no larger than Grouse. Some are noted for the 

 possession of a gular air sac, capable of immense inflation, and for the extraordinary appearance they present when " show- 

 ing off," under amatory excitement, the effect of which is heightened by curious long whisker-like bristles or other pe- 

 culiarly modified feathers, and great variegation of the general plumage. The best known species is the great Bustard of 

 Europe, Otis tarda ; another is the little Bustard of the same country, Tetrax telrax ; a third one sometimes found in 

 Europe is Iloubara macqueeni ; but all these are also Asiatic. The other species of Bustards inhabit either Asia or 

 Africa or both, the greater luimber of species occurring in the latter continent. 



2. Fam. Cariamid,s;. This consists of two South American birds, Cariama cristala and Chunga burmeisteri, so pe- 

 culiar that they constitute a suborder Caeiam^e. Some evidence of raptorial relationship is afforded by their resemblance 

 in several respects to the African Serpent-eater or Secretary-bird, Serpenlarius secretarius ; and some ornithologists have 

 gone so far as to classify Cariamas under Raptores. But if the relation in this case could be shown to be one of real affin- 

 ity, it might be nearer the mark to remove Serpeiitariu.i from among birds of prey and bring it into the present connec- 

 tion ; and to do so would certainly not hurt I'aludicohr as an order of birds ! The Cariama and the Chunga are large 

 birds, with moderately long legs (for this order) ; four toes ; short stout bill ; and a helmet-like crest. The myological 

 formula differs in the two species ; both lack the femorocaudal, and Chunga also lacks the accessory femorocaudal ; the 

 palate is not typically schizognathous, and the raptorial characters are exhibited by the osteology. There are two long 

 cseca, and the digestive system in general is Crane-like, as is also the pterylosis (though the wing is quintocubital) ; 

 the oil-gland is nude. The nest is built on trees, and the eggs are two. The balance of evidence favors the retention 

 of the family in the Crane group, though it is excluded from the Alectorides of Sclater, Sharpe, and other British 

 authorities. 



3. Fam. Anhimid.e (commonly called Palantedeidw). This is another puzzling family, probably entitled to ordinal 

 rank, and if kept among Paludicoliue birds certainly forming a suborder Anhim*:. It consists of only three species, of 

 two genera, Anhima (or Palamedea) cnrniila, the Homed Screamer or Unicorn-bird ; Chauna chavaria, of authors, the 

 Crested Screamer or Chaka (now called C cristata) ; and C. ilerbiann of authors (now called C. chaiaria ). How anom- 

 alous is the " .all-together " of these birds may be judged from the fact that they offer a point of resemblance to the 

 Jura-ssic Arrhwopleri/x in absence of uncinate processes of ribs, as is the case with no other living birds; nitestinal 

 diar.icters resemble in some respects those of struthious birds ; the skeleton is distinctly anserine, in most respects, with 

 some peculiarities of its own besides the one just mentioned, such as position of basipterygoids ; the respiratory organs 

 are al.so somewhat anserine ; but the remarkable development of the subcutaneous air-cells produces an emphysematous 

 condition like that of Pelicans ; the pterylosis is peculiar, in the almost entire absence of apteria ; the myology is equiv- 

 ocal. The external aspect of these birds is hardly less remarkable than their anatomy : bill of gallinaceous ap|>earnnce ; 

 head small ; feet large and stout, with tibiie naked below, tarsi reticulate, hallux long and low down, anterior toes connected 

 by small webs, and claws long and strong, especially the hinder one ; wings ample, with enlarged secondaries, and a (uur 



The name was galvanized into something like life by Dr. Sclater in 1S80, when it was made to cover six fomiliea — Arn- 

 inidir, Knrypygiilir, Gruidir, f'.iop/iii<lir, Curianiidn-, Otididir, and at the same time an order Fulicarirr wa« invented 

 for the two families Ratlid(P (including Riiils, Gallinules, and Coots) and Hetit>milhid(T. These two orders rontiiuie to 

 Ih- sanctioned by Dr. Sclater, Dr. Sharpe, and other leaders of the B. O. C They correspond i>reciholy with my two sub- 

 orders Onti/ormes and Italli/ormrs of previous editions of the Key, 18.S4-90; and I continue to uphold tliem both per- 

 force, /nut de miruT, under the names Gnte.i and I'alli, as per A. O. U. — except that I keep Arnmiis with the former, 

 instead of changing it to the latter. These two suborders together constitute my former order AUctoruitt — the present 

 order Paliidicoltr of the Key. as of the A. O. U. 



