NO. 1449. THE OSTEOLOr; Y OF 8IN0PA—MA TTHEW. 2 1 5 



posteriorly by the mastoid portion of the periotic. At the bottom of 

 this fossa lie the stylomastoid foramen and another foramen or deep 

 fossa which I do not recognize. Behind the prominence lies the large 

 oval posterior lacerate (jugular) foramen. The mastoid processes are 

 of moderate size, short and stout, and extend, wing-like, outward and 

 partly downward; posteriorly they are confluent with the bases of the 

 paroccipitals. The postglenoid processes resemble the corresponding- 

 parts in T)ap}mnm\ the postglenoid foramen is of moderate size. 

 The foramen ovale is rather large and is situate opposite the glenoid 

 fossa, as in Carnivora; in Insectivora, and especially in marsupials, it is 

 considerably in advance of it. The alisphcnoid extends some distance 

 behind the foramen ovale, wedged in between the basisphenoid and 

 the glenoid portion of the squamosal, but it has no dependent process 

 such as is seen in marsupials, and is especially developed in certain 

 Insectivora. The posterior narcs are not roofed over behind the 

 molars, but the nareal canal is deep and broad, the pterygoid portions 

 of the palatine and alisphenoid forming large dependent plates, as in 

 Carnivora. The pterygoids proper are not preserved on this speci- 

 men. The pterygoid plates of the alisphenoid are variably developed 

 in Insectivora, very slightly so in marsupials. 



The palate is completely ossified. A number of minute {% nutritive) 

 foramina on its surface are thought by Wortman to be an approach to 

 the incompletely ossified palate of certain modern marsupials and 

 some insectivores, but of this there seems to be no sufficient evidence. 

 The posterior border of the palate is somewhat thickened, as in 

 Centetes and Myogale^ but has little resemblance to the posterior 

 expansion and strong transverse crest seen in Erinaceus ^iWiDideljAiyH. 



The occiput presents a very different appearance from that of the 

 modern Canidas and differs in much more essential respects from that 

 of marsupials or Insectivora. The principal differences from the 

 modern carnivore skull are apparently dependent upon the small 

 development of the brain. The Oligocene Carnivora, and especially 

 Daph/enus^ approach it much more closely. The early Ungulata also 

 exhibit a considerable resemblance, but from Insectivora and mar- 

 supials it is separated by more radical features. 



The exposure of the mastoid on the side of the skull is very small, 

 scarcely extending above the mastoid process. The occipital surface 

 is much contracted above the condyles, and above that flares out into 

 a broad plate formed by the expanded occipital crests. These are 

 continued downward and forward in strong lambdoid crests to the 

 mastoid processes. Between the lambdoid crest and the condyle is a 

 deep fossa bounded below by a strong crest connecting the outer ends 

 of the condyle with the base of the paroccipital process. In Daph- 

 rmms this deep fossa is largely filled up, presumably by expansion of 

 the cerebellum from within; in Canis there is nothing left of it. In 



