CLASSIFICATION, AND PHYLOGENY OF THE DINORNITHID^. 427 



foramina and its broad skull, but in other respects — the form of the orbit, the length, 

 breadth, and strong deflection of the beak, &c. — is quite peculiar. I think that on 

 the whole it is reasonable to suppose this most specialized of the Moas to have sprung 

 ■from the common ancestor of the family independently of all the other existing genera. 

 It is, however, quite possible that future research may show Hutton to be right in 

 placing Palapteryx on or near the line connecting Dinornis with the generalized 

 ancestor of the group. 



The accompanying diagrams (pp. 425, 426) express these views in a graphic form. 

 The first figure has the tree-shape adopted by Fiirbringer, which, after several trials, I 

 find more suitable to the present purpose than the usual straight-line diagram. The 

 second figure shows the same thing in horizontal projection : the various genera of Dinor- 

 nithida3 are included in a tinted area indicating the limits of the family : the DinornithidtE 

 and Apteryx on the one hand, and tlie Emu and Cassowary ou the other, are enclosed by 

 an even line indicating the limits of two groups, probably of subordinal value, including 

 respectively the New Zealand and the Australian forms : finally all these are enclosed 

 within a dotted line to show that the Australasian forms may be included in a natural 

 group, perhaps of ordinal value, clearly separated from the isolated Asio-African and 

 South-American genera. 



These conclusions may be further expressed by a tabic of Classification as follows: — 



Subclass R A T I T .E, Meirem. 



Order I. STRUTHIONES, Newton. 



Fam. Strdthion'id.k. Genus Struthio. 

 Order II. RHE^, Newton. 



Fam. Rheid.!. Genus Rhea. 

 Order III. MEGISTANES, Newton. 



Suborder I. Casuariformes, Fiirbringer. 

 Fam. I. Casuariid.e. Genus Casuarius. 

 2. Drom.eiu.e. Genus Dromceus. 

 Suborder 2. A p t e r y g i f o r m e s, Fiirbringer. 



Fam. I. DlNORNlTHID^. 



Subfam. a. Dinornithinae. Genus Dinornis. 



Subfam. b. Aiiomalopteryginae. Geneva. Pachyornis,Mesoptertjx,Anomalopteryx^. 

 Subfam. c. Emeinae. Genus Emeus. 

 Fam. 2. ApTERYGiCiE. Genus Apteryx. 



List of Works referred to. 



1. Forbes, H. O. PreUminary Notice of Additions to the Extinct Avifauna of New Zealand. 



(Abstract.) Trans. N. Z. Inst. vol. xxiv. (1891), p. 185. 



2. Forbes, H. O. On a Recent Discovery of tlie Remains of E.\tiuct Birds in New Zealand. 



Nature, vol. xlv. (1892), p. 416. 



' And probably MegalapUryx. See Note, p. 378. — June lb95. 



