12 Shufeldt, Osteology of the Red Wattle-Bird, [,sf "jui ' 



Prosthemadera novce-zealandice., and Entomyza, of 3 centimetres, 

 the characters of the bone being very similar in all three of these 

 genera. The summit, including the head and trochanter, is 

 flat ; the shaft is straight and cylindrical, and the condyles of 

 considerable size proportionately. These last are sharp in front 

 in Anthochcera, but not so in the other species named, while in all 

 the groove for the head of the fibula on the posterior aspect of 

 the external condyle behind is invariably well marked. It would 

 be dilhcult to distinguish the femur of P. novcB-hollandice from 

 that of E. cyanotis, while the form of the condyles anteriorly in 

 Anthochcera carunculata is characteristic as well as diagnostic in 

 so far as these birds go. 



The tibio-tarsus has an extreme length of 5.4 cms. in A. carun- 

 culata, 5.3 cms. in E. cyanotis, and 5.Q cms. in P. novce-zealandicB. 

 In all it is straight, and presents the typical Passerine characters. 

 We note that the fibula is feebly developed, and in P. novcB- 

 zealandicB does not extend below the fibular ridge on the side of 

 the tibio-tarsal shaft. 



Of all the bones of the pelvic limb, in the case of the Red Wattle- 

 Bird, the tarso-metatarsus is most diagnostic. Indeed, it is 

 peculiar in its morphology, and may be recognized on sight and 

 distinguished at once from the bone in the case of any of the other 

 tarso-metatarsi of Meliphagidines at hand. This is due to the 

 formation of the entire shaft, which, upon its outer aspect, is flat 

 and smooth, being as broad proximally as the shaft and outer 

 surface of the hypotarsus combined, completely shutting the 

 latter out of sight on this view. From this point it gradually 

 narrows down as it proceeds distally till it comes to be the width 

 of the external trochlea, upon the outer side of which it merges. 

 For the proximal moiety, or rather moie, this is but a thin plate ; 

 and, as the inner border of the shaft is somewhat raised posteriorly, 

 and the hypotarsus is but a small cube in form, the posterior aspect 

 of the shaft, from the latter down to the free metatarsal, has the 

 appearance of being deeply excavated, which excavation gradually 

 shallows as we proceed distally. 



The hypotarsus is four times pierced for the passage of tendons, 

 the anterior pair of foramina being the larger, and the posterior 

 ones very small. The distal end of the bone bearing the three 

 trochlea is greatly bent posteriorly — a bending which is still 

 more evident in the case of the tarso-metatarsus of P. nova- 

 zeal andicB. 



P. novce-hollandicB has the outer side of the shaft of its tarso- 

 metatarsus formed like Anthochcera carunculata, but to a very less 

 degree, while it is entirely absent in the case of Entomyza cyanotis, 

 the bone in the latter species being much as we find it throughout 

 all medium-sized Passerine birds. 



In A. carunculata it has an extreme length of 3.4 cms. ; in E. 

 cyanotis, 3.5 cms. ; and in P. novce-zealandice, 3.85 cms. In all 

 these species the first metatarsal (free) is of considerable size as 

 compared with many other birds of similar sizes. 



