23 



form that of an Ibis but somewhat more straight, is singular on ac- 

 count of neither of the mandibles presenting any concavity on their 

 inner or ojjposed surface, except close to the base : it is scarcely less 

 extraordinary in the position of its nostrils, ■vvhich are seated close to 

 the apex, and through ■which a bristle may be passed freely along 

 the \vhole length of the beak, 64 inches, to the head. 



The position of the nostrils, the short tarsi, and the decidedly ra- 

 sorial character of the toes and claws, indicate the necessity of its food 

 being obtained on dry land ; and Col. Sykes having found beetles, 

 grasshoppers, seeds, and vegetable fibres, in the stomachs of some of 

 the Indian species of Ibis, Mr. Yarrell conjectures that the food of the 

 Apteryx is probably similar. 



Mr. Yarrell concluded by stating his impression that a second repre- 

 sentation of the bird might be acceptable to zoologists, the figures in 

 the ' Naturalist's Miscellany,' besides being but little knowri, being 

 deficient in two or three paiticulars vvhich he enumerated. 



