412 EAYMOND PEARL AND M. R. CURTIS 



until February 6 of her second year when she was killed for 

 data. She was twenty-two months old and was a large and 

 very fat bird. In the uterus was a small membrane-shelled 

 egg weighing only 23 grams. The yolk of this egg weighed only 

 4.87 grams. The oviduct was normal except that the opening of 

 the funnel seemed small. In the ovary were four yolks above 

 one centimeter and six between a centimeter and a millimeter 

 in diameter. The ovarian yolks were a normal series of maturing 

 yolks, the largest of which was apparently too large to enter 

 the oviduct. The ovary also contained four large follicles. 

 In the body cavity was a creamy oily fluid. This was apparently 

 yolk mixed with serum. There was no appearance of peritonitis; 

 in fact the bird was apparently in perfect health. 



Bird no. 1375 laid reasonably w^ell during her first two laying 

 years producing 141 eggs the first year and 117 the second 

 but after the second adult molt she laid but one egg (February 

 14, 1914). On March 7, 1914, she was killed for data. She 

 was thirty-five months old and was very fat. On opening 

 the sheet of fat enclosing the viscera they were seen to be cov- 

 ered with thick fresh egg yolk. The peritonemn was perfectly 

 normal. The oviduct was large and normal in appearance. The 

 finger could easily be inserted into the funnel mouth which was 

 apparently large enough to admit a normal mature yolk. The 

 duct was open throughout. The glandular ridges of the albu- 

 men secreting and isthmus regions were expanded and whitish, 

 as if full of secretion. There was a little albmnen between the 

 ridges in the albumen secreting portion. The funnel hung 

 rather loosely from its ligamentary attachments. When the 

 body cavity was opened the ostium was situated at some dis- 

 tance behind the largest yolk. The intestines were still capable 

 of normal peristalsis and slight peristaltic movements could be 

 induced in the oviduct. Quantitative data are lacking but the 

 response of the duct seemed less vigorous than the normal re- 

 sponse of the oviducts of laying birds when stimulated imme- 

 diately after death. In the ovary was a large empty follicle 

 apparently just discharged and five others ranging gradually in 

 sizre from this to one about 1 mm. in diameter. There were also 



