1817.) Blainville, Distribution du Regne Animal. 223 
to him to be no more than a continuation of the spinal marrow, * 
and the lower bones of the head to be coalesced vertebrae. 
‘Class I.— Mammalia, Piliferes, or Mastoxoaires. 
These animals he distributes into two sub-classes: 1. Monodel- 
phés. 2. Didelphes. The first he divides into six orders; the 
second contains but one. The cetaceous animals he has placed in 
the same order with the cdentés; but observes that they should 
rather be considered as constituting an order by themselves. The 
genera echidra and ornithorhynchus he has placed with the didelphes, 
but be thinks they may probably form a distinct sub-class, 
Class I1.—Aves, Birds, Pennif eres, or Ornithoxoaires. 
The classification of these animals he founds in the form of the 
sternum and its appendices; but here too he has shown us external 
characters by which his orders and families may be distinguished. 
The first order, prehensores, contains the parrots; the second, 
vaphores, the birds of prey; the third, scawsores, the climbing 
birds; the fourth, saltatores, the passarine birds; the fifth, gira- 
tores, the columbine birds; the sixth, the gradatores, or galinaceous 
birds; the seventh, cwrsores, or ostrich-like birds; the eighth, 
grallatores, or waders and divers; the ninth, natatores, the web- 
footed birds. : 
This disposition not only appears to be perfectly natural, but is at 
the same time superior in every point of view to any system of birds 
that has hitherto been proposed. 
Class 111.—Squammiferes, or scaled Reptiles. 
The disposition of this and the following class is founded on the 
consideration of the skull, and was made public in Dr. Blainville’s 
lectures delivered before the Faculté des Sciences as long ago as 
1812. This class he divides into three orders—1. Cheloniens, or 
tortoises. 2. Emydo-sauriens, or crocodiles. 3. Bisperiens : sub- 
order, 1. Sawriens, or lizards with scales; 2. Ophydiens, or serpents. 
Class 1V.— Nudipelliferes, or naked Reptiles. 
Order, 1. Batraciens, or frogs. 2. Pseudo-sauriens, or sala- 
manders. 3. Amphibiens, or protei and sirenes. 4. Pseudo-ophy- 
diens, or coeciliz. 
Class V.—Pisces, Fishes, or Branchif eres. 
These animals he distributes into two sub-classes, from the im- 
plantation of their teeth, which he believes to be a character not 
hitherto employed by any other naturalist. These divisions, how- 
ever, are not new, although distinguished by new characters. The 
first of these, dermodontes, contains the cartilaginous fishes, which 
* This fact was likewise inferred by Dr. Leach, who was led to the conclusion 
in consequence of the splendid anatomical discoveries of Dr. Spurzheim on the 
structure of the brain, 
