92 PETRIFACTIONS AND THEIR TEACHINGS. CHAP. II. 



ornithic, support the conclusion that these also must be 

 ascribed to flying reptiles. 



The enormous size of the bones, however, indicating an 

 expanse of ten or twelve feet from the extremity of one wing 

 across to that of the other, and suggesting the idea of a flying 

 reptile equal in magnitude to the fabled Roc of Arabian 

 story, threw doubts on the pterodactylian nature of these 

 remains ; but Mr. Bowerbank has lately obtained from the 

 same quarry portions of an upper jaw with teeth, so large, 

 that the head of the creature to which it belonged could not 

 have been less than sixteen or seventeen inches in length ; l a 

 size proportionate to that of the bones of the extremities 

 above alluded to. 



But although no certain vestiges of birds have yet been 

 discovered in the Wealden or Cretaceous formations, I think 

 there are good reasons for supposing that such remains will 

 sooner or later be brought to light : for independently of the 

 ornithic structure detected by the microscope, I had from the 

 Wealden a portion of an ulna, on which there was a row of 

 distinct eminences, as in birds, for the attachment of the 

 large wing-feathers ; this specimen was in the collection 

 purchased by the Trustees of the British Museum. 



Tertiary Epoch. In the most ancient tertiary strata, bones 

 of several genera of birds occur ; in the Sub-Himalayan 

 deposits they are associated with relics of the extinct probosci- 

 dean mammalia of India : in those of the Paris Basin, with 

 remains of Paleeotheria, &c. From the miocene and pliocene 

 lacustrine deposits of Auvergne, bones, and even egg-shells, 

 of several kinds of aquatic birds have been obtained. 



The ossiferous caverns which abound in the bones and 

 teeth of numerous carnivora, often contain the remains of 

 existing genera of birds. In the Cave of Kirkdale, Dr. 

 Buckland discovered bones of species of raven, pigeon, duck, 

 lark, snipe, &c. 2 



The fossil bones of birds, however, even in the most recent 

 deposits, were of such rare occurrence, as to be ranked by the 



1 Described by Mr. Bowerbank under the name of Pterodactyls 

 giganteus. Proceedings of the Zoological Society. 



2 See "Reliquiae Diluvianae," p. 34; "Medals of Creation," A rt. " OIINI- 



THOLITES/' p. 795. 



