108 ANSERIFORMES CHAP. 
promiscuously by the hen. The young run from the shell, and 
even when fully grown can be driven in flocks by intending captors. 
Of extinct forms the allied Agnopterus occurs in the Upper 
Eocene of France and possibly of England; Helornis, with some- 
what shorter bones, in the Lower Miocene of France and the transi- 
tion beds of the two formations, as well as the Middle Miocene of 
Germany; and several species of Phoenicopterus, in the French 
Lower Miocene, the Phocene of Oregon, and the Mare aux Songes 
in Mauritius. Lastly, there are five species of Palaelodus, con- 
stituting the family Palaelodidae, in which the bill was probably 
straight, and the tibia and metatarsus were much shorter than in 
Phoenicopterus, but the toes longer. They are found in lacustrine 
deposits of the French Lower Miocene and the German Middle 
Miocene, while remains resembling them, to which the name Seani- 
ornis has been given, are met with in the Chalk of South Sweden.” 
Order VI. ANSERIFORMES. 
The Order Anseriformes consists of the Sub-Orders PALAMEDEAE 
and ANSERES, each containing a single Family, Palamedeidae and 
Anatidae respectively. Lying between the Ciconiiformes and 
the Falconiformes, the connexion of this group with the former 
is much the most easily recognised, as it shows decided affinities 
to the PHOENICOPTERI, while between the ANSERES and the Birds 
of Prey there occurs one of those gaps common to every linear 
system of classification. All the members agree in having the 
furcula U-shaped and the nostrils pervious. The large spiral 
penis is unique among the Carinatae, though comparable with 
that of the Ratitae. The down is uniformly distributed in both 
adults and nestlings, the aftershaft is rudimentary or absent, the 
tongue is thick and fleshy, and has bristly sides in the Anatidae ; 
while the possession of two pairs of sterno-tracheal muscles is a 
marked point of distinction from other Carinate Birds. All the 
species are aquatic, and live almost entirely on vegetable matter. 
The young leave the nest within a few days, or even hours. 
Fam. I. Palamedeidae.—In this group the head is small and 
the neck long, while the ribs have no uncinate processes, an archaic 
feature only found elsewhere among Birds in Archaeopteryx. The 
1 Milne-Edwards, Oiseaux Fossiles de la France, li. 1868, p. 58. 
2 Dames, Svensk. Ak. Handl. Bihang, xvi. 1890, Part IV. No. 1, pp. 4-11. 
