Mr. W. K. Parker on Palamedea Chavaria. I4f 



ealated tarsi, like those of the Goose, and not like those of the Cranes 

 and Rails, which have them scutellate in front. Whilst removing 

 the viscera, I saw that the trachea and inferior larynx were truly an- 

 serine ; for there are no inferior laryngeal muscles, the contractors 

 of the trachea ending one-third of an inch above the bifurcation, and 

 only a delicate fan-shaped fascia going to the half-rings. Moreover 

 the trachea itself, from being flat and cartilaginous, becomes round 

 and then compressed and osseous an inch above the bronchi, so that 

 it cannot be mistaken for the trachea of any other than an anatine 

 bird. There is nothing wliatever in the digestive organs, which are 

 extremely voluminous, to separate the bird from the Geese ; yet the 

 gizzard is not so strong as in the types, and the caeca coli are shorter 

 and wider. I hare at present only hinted at the osteology of the 

 Palamedea. It diverges from the Goose in all this part of its com- 

 position, just as much as it converges towards the Curassow and the 

 Talegalla ; but it is not only more galline than the true Geese (we 

 have seen that both Geese and Fowls have much in common), it is 

 also plainly more lacertine. It will require a goodly memoir to do 

 it justice ; but in this short notice I must mention one or two things. 

 Its large toft tongue, which has not the papillae homy, has in it the 

 cerato-hyals, ossified from separate points as in the Goose and Hen, 

 much nearer the former than the latter ; but the free thyro-hyals are 

 flattened from above downwards, and cannot be mistaken for those of 

 any other but an anserine or anatine bird. All the skull and face, 

 except at the two ends, conform to the lamellirostral type. Point by 

 point, process by process, lamina for lamina, all else is truly and 

 distinctly that which belongs to the Sifler, and to no other bird. 

 It may be said indeed that this bird is not a Sif^r ; it is, howerer, 

 a browzer and a grater ; and being of Lincolnshire descent, and 

 familiar with the fens, I am well acquainted with the grazing habits 

 of the typical Goose*. There is a little of the Crane in the sternum ; 

 but, on tiie whole, the skeleton may be said to belong to a very lacer- 

 txan Goose. This is cautiously said ; for have we not four fore claws 

 in the wing, extremely long sprawling toes, and the ribs perfectly 

 destitute of the nearly universal tie-bones or appendages? Thia 

 deficiency is unique amongst birds ; and the Crocodiles possess these 

 appendages : I consider this a lacertian character, as their occasional 

 presence in Lizards is as exceptional as their absence in birds. Now 

 amongst the rib-like bones in the fossil skeleton of the Archteopteryx 

 I see nothing like an appendage starting from any one of them ; nor 

 has Professor Owen figured anything of the kind in his beautiful 

 memoir in the ' Philosophical Transactions.' Let it be added that, 

 although several genera of birds have spurs to their wings, these 

 birds all lie nearly on the same ornithic plane as the Palamedea, 

 — the Syrian Blackbird (Merula dactyloptera) (see Professor Owen 

 on Arckttopteryx, p. 39) being the only exception. The Megapode 

 is also nienticned by Professor Owen (ibid.) ; but that is a great 

 help to me, and comes in well. 



the cackling goose, 



Close-gruer ." — PkUipt'$ Cyd«r. 



10* 



