Letters, Announcements, S^c. 4G3 



after close investigation of the embryonic condition of different 

 stages in five types of bird-structure (the Ostrich, Guillemot, 

 Gull, Domestic Fowl, and Gannet), has come to the con- 

 clusion that the keel of Carinate Birds is a special outgrowth 

 of the true sternum peculiar to Birds, and not homologous 

 with the episternum or interclavicle of Reptiles, as has been 

 held by Gotte and others. According to Miss Lindsay's ob- 

 servations, there are no traces whatever in the embryonic 

 stages of the Ostrich of the existence of any rudiments of the 

 clavicles or keel. If this be the case, it follows that the view 

 held by some Morphologists that the Ostrich may be a de- 

 graded descendant of some Carinate form can no longer be 

 supported. It is to be hoped that Miss Lindsay may be 

 induced to continue her investigations on the other existing 

 forms of Batite Birds, so as to settle, if possible, the vexed 

 question as to the unity of this group. 



Mure Neivs of Dr. 0. F'msch. — In April last Dr. Finsch was 

 at Mioko, Duke of York Islands, whence he sends us descrip- 

 tions of two new birds from New Ireland, which will appear 

 in our next Number. Dr. Finsch speaks of the extraordinary 

 form of the trachea in Matiucodia comrii, which he had met 

 with in the D^Entrecastaux group of islands. Nothing, he 

 says, can exceed the beauty of this bird when fresh. Un- 

 fortunately Dr. Finsch had no collector with him, and having 

 much work in other ways, he has been unable to make a large 

 collection ; but, as we all know, he is well acquainted with 

 the Papuan avifauna, and he never fails to record his orni- 

 thological observations in his diary. 



Habits of Raggi's Paradise-bird. — So little is known of 

 the habits of the Paradiseidae that the following account of 

 Paradisea raggiana, extracted from ' Work and Adven- 

 ture in New Guinea,' by Messrs. Chalmers and Wyatt, will 

 be of interest : — " One morning we had camped on a spur 

 of the Owen Stanley Range, and being up early, to enjoy the 

 cool atmosphere, I saw on one of the clumps of trees close by 

 six Birds of Paradise, four cocks and two hens. The hens 



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