Miscellaneous. 499 
This same arrangement occurs again in the embryo of these mollusks 
before they issue from the egg; the otolithe, smaller than in the 
adult, presents, like it, very active oscillatory movements.— Wieg- 
mann’s Archiv, 1845, p. 217. 
Comparative Anatomy of the Vocal Organs of Birds. By Prof. Miurr. 
The merit of the first examination of the vocal apparatus of birds 
belongs to Cuvier, to whom is also due the greatest part of the facts 
relative to its organization. More recently, M. Nitzsch has sought 
to derive advantage from the examination of the inferior larynx for 
the classification of birds, which has always been, as is well-known, 
one of the most embarrassing problems of the natural methods. 
M. Miller has recently made a long series of observations on the 
vocal organ of the Passerine ; the results of his labours are as yet 
only partly known; a detailed description will soon be published in 
the Mémoires de l’Académie of Berlin. Meanwhile we shall here 
point out some general conclusions of this investigation, which is 
impatiently looked for, as is everything from the pen of the illustrious 
Berlin professor. 
M. Miiller concludes from the facts which he has observed, that 
the singing Passerine cannot form a natural division, and, in opposi- 
tion to the opinion of M. Nitzsch, he affirms that the Picide cannot 
be separated from them. ‘The most natural groups of the order of 
Passerine contain types which differ in the organization of their la- 
rynx, and the variabilities of that apparatus render it little suitable 
to serve for classification. It is the less so, as the song may be pro- 
duced by apparatus of very different structure. The order Passerine 
_ must probably be preserved in its most extended limits, comprising 
even the Syndactyles and the Climbers, and it must include, both 
those birds which have the most perfect vocal apparatus, and others 
in which it seems to be reduced to its greatest simplicity. 
The two most common forms of vocal organ among birds are :— 
Ist, the muscular vocalizing apparatus, formed on the type of that of 
our European singing-birds ; 2nd, the form with a single muscle, thick 
or thin. It is to be remarked, that the first form prevails in Europe and 
in Africa, and that the second is more common in America. Incon- 
sequence, the forests of the old world contain more real singing- 
birds; those of the new world chiefly abound in birds with a loud 
but little-varied voice, and resound much oftener with shrieks than 
with songs. Beside these two widely distributed forms, there are 
many other more special laryngian organizations : the most compii- 
cated is that of the Parrots. 
M. Miiller’s memoir will contain numerous facts in detail, and 
engravings of all the forms described.—Proc. Berlin Academy, June 
1845. 
