Dr. J. Murie on the Motmots and their Affinities. 399 



limb is inflated and spongy. Their interorbital septum has a 

 large unossified space ; and there is a groove immediately in 

 front of the postfrontal process — the latter short, the orbit gain- 

 ing accordingly. The temporal grooves in the Kingfisher well 

 nigh meet ; they are mesially wider apart in the Motmots, there- 

 fore causing the occipital facies to be fuller. Instead of a linear 

 separation, with flatness of maxillo-palatines, which characterizes 

 the latter, the former have them thoroughly joined together in- 

 wardly ; and at this point they are deeply grooved, and shoot 

 back and up into the cleft behind. The broader palatal plates 

 spined posteriorly, and reduced postnarial aperture again dis- 

 tinguish Kingfisher from Motmot, besides other minor detail of 

 parts. Still, one thing with another, there is no gainsaying the 

 fact that the two aviue types share many features in common in 

 cranial composition and its lineaments generally. 



The Daceloniue skull departs in beak-breadth, elongation of 

 upper lachrymal limb, and sundry other particulars. The Alce- 

 dine section run ofl" at an opposite tangent, and therein pursue 

 a course affining them with the Bee-eaters. 



The pelvis of the Halcyoninse ofiers strong resemblances to the 

 Motmots. The sternal apparatus, however, has less agreement, 

 this section of the Kingfishers having an upper furcular spur, a 

 greater anterior emarginate ploughshare keel, open notches, and a 

 breastbone longer relatively to its breadth than obtains in the 

 Motmots. 



In the proportions of limbs and their segments to each other 

 my researches show that the wing-bones of the Momotidse and 

 Alcediuidse do not widely differ. Such is not the case with 

 the leg, where in all the latter the tarsus is relatively shorter, 

 and in Cerijle no more than half what obtains in the Motmots. 

 As regards proportions of the entire length of the leg to wing, 

 Eumomota bears towards the Haley onince ; but this section and 

 Momotus much exceed the rest of the Kingfishers in this respect. 



5. Comparisons ivith other Families — I may asseverate that 

 the foregoing bird-groups, taken all in all, are those which in 

 skeleton come nearest the Momotidse. It is not so essential, 

 then, that I should follow the minutiae of the bony constituents 

 of other presumed allies further than by referring to a few of 

 the more obvious points. 



