3IO 



NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



Still regarding this skull from the aspect presented, and to make 



some of its characters still more evi- 

 dent Ijy contrast, we will place it be- 

 side the skull of Mergus, already 

 described in the early part of this 

 paper. We note the difference in the 

 form of the bill; the presence of the 

 craniofacial line in the goose, while 

 it is absent in the Merganser. Both 

 have the narrow depressions along 

 the margins of the orbits for the 

 nasal glands, but posterior to this the 

 goose has the domelike vault of the 

 cranumi so characteristic of the more 

 highly organized types of the Anati- 

 dae, while we see that this region in 

 the Merganser is much flattened. 



Regarding the skull from the 

 under side, we are particularly to note 

 the difference in form of the maxil- 

 lopalatines, the palatine bodies, and 

 the pterygoids. 



As a rule, in the skull of geese the 



osseous mandibles vary in length, but 



are always broad and of a lamellar 



. "'^'i^ '" Structure; the lacrymofrontal suture 



^ is obliterated ; a descending process of 



the lacrymal is much expanded, with 



% ^^^ . its flat surface directed outward ; the 



mastoidal head of quadrate double ; 

 trochleae of mandibular foot of quad- 

 rate with their long axes placed 



Fig. 37 Right lateral view of the nearly at right angles with the long 



skull of Brant a canadensis. ^^-^^ ^^ ^j^^ ^j^^^jj niaxillopalatines 

 Mandible removed. Natural size. 



^. Drawn by the author from a fuSC iu the median line for their en- 

 specimen in his own collection, now j.j^g lengths, uo postcrior proccsses, 



in the State Museum; the goose hav- '^ . , , . , 



mg been shot by him on the Platte and the ptGrygoids short. Straight, 

 river, Fort Fetterman, Wyoming, ^j-,(| niucli larger anteriorly than they 



i8So , ■ ■ 1 ^ ■^• 



are at their proximal extremities. 

 From a consideration of the skull of the ordinary goose we are 

 naturally led to an examination of that part of the skeleton in the 

 "tree ducks." To this end I have carefully comoared the cranium; 



