THE PIGEON. 209 



of the tarso-metatarsus near its distal end, and of two 

 phalanges, a proximal and a distal, the latter modified for 

 the support of a claw. 



120. The three forwardly directed toes, representing the 

 second, third, and fourth digits, and having their metatarsals 

 united to form the tarso-metatarsus : the second digit, or 

 innermost of the three, consists of three phalanges, the next 

 of four, and the fourth or outermost of five, the distal pha- 

 lanx in each case being modified for the support of 

 a claw. 



B. DIRECTIONS FOR DISSECTION. 



XVI. Either pluck the feathers from one side of 

 the bird, leaving the other side untouched, or 

 better, have two birds for comparison, one entire, 

 the other plucked : note the following external 

 characters : 



121. The division of the body into head, neck, trunk, 

 and limbs : the relatively great length of the neck : the 

 absence of a true tail, the body terminating posteriorly 

 in a short obtusely conical process, the rump or 

 uropygium. 



122. The great influence of the external covering of 

 contour feathers or pennae in determining the contour 

 of the body, the form of the plucked bird being altogether 

 different from that of the entire one. 



123. The filoplumes, small, hair-like feathers, situated 

 between the contour feathers, and exposed by the removal 

 of the latter in the plucked bird. 



124. The rounded form of the cranial portion of the 

 head, and the production of the facial portion into a 



p 



