ZOOLOGY. 805 



arrest sound and direct it toward the ear, we may, if we can overcome 

 our disinclination to attribute an auricle to a reptile, recofj;nize this as 

 part of its office, without prejudice to its supposed use as an engine of 

 terror to assailants." 



The moditicatious of the hind liiabs were not as great as might be 

 naturally supposed, although Mr. De Vis thought that he might "fairly 

 be allowed an expression of surprise on finding that the semi-erect at- 

 titude and plantigrade gait of the creature are not facilitated by any 

 additions or modifications in the hind quarters and liuibs.'' No essen- 

 tial differences, from ordinary lizards are apparent. " The possibility of 

 raising the body ou the legs is rather permitted by circumstances gen- 

 erally favorable than brought about by direct means. It is in the com- 

 parative shortness and lightness of the head and anterior part of the 

 trunk: the length without undue weakness of the hind limb; above all," 

 as it ai^peared to Mr. De Vis, " the imperfect isolation of the sev^eral 

 muscles, which enables them to act in certain directions with combined 

 strength, that we must find an explanation of the power possessed by 

 this lizard of simulating the gait of a cursorial bird." {Proc. Linn. Soc. 

 JV. >S\ Wales, v. 8, pp. 300-320.) 



Birds. 



Important collections in the British Museum. — Two extremely impor- 

 tant and rich collections of bird-skins have been given to the British 

 Museum by their owners; one especially devoted to American species, 

 and the other to Indian forms. 



The American collection was the result of collections during a number 

 of years by Messrs. Osbert Salvin and Frederick Du Cane Godman, of 

 London, and contained " upwards of 20,000 specimens." Many types of 

 formerly "new species" are in the collection, and numerous memoirs, as 

 well as the ornithological portion of the " Biologia Centrali- Americana," 

 have been based on its contents, and, indeed, the specimens belonging 

 to the families not yet studied for the latter work are reserved by the 

 authors till their examinations shall be finished. There is said to be 

 "a stipulation in the terms of gift that any specimen required by the 

 donors may be removed on loan from the museum during the lifetime 

 of the donors or the survivor of them." (1M.9, (5,) v. 3, p. 236.) 



The Indian collection is due to the unsparing efforts and expenditures 

 of Mr. Allen O. Hume, an Indian government officer, and contained not 

 less than " 63,000 birds," besides "18,500 eggs" and "500 nests." The 

 sum of £300 was appropriated by the English Government for "pack- 

 ing and transmitting from Simla to England a part of Mr. Hume's col- 

 lection of Indian birds, presented by him to the trustees" of the museum. 

 Mr. E. B. Sharpe, the curator of the ornithological section of the mu- 

 seum, "started for Simla the end of April to superintend the packing of 

 the collection," and was absent several months. Mr. Sharpe has good 

 reason for thinking that "it is not too much to affirm that such a private 



