RASORES. 453 



at the extremity of the upper mandible. The legs are com- 

 paratively short, and there is a rudimentary hind-toe or hallux, 

 forming a kind of spur, furnished with a claw. The wings are 

 entirely rudimentary, and are quite concealed by the feathers, 

 each terminating in a sharp claw. The feathers are long and 

 narrow, and the tail is short and inconspicuous. The Apteryx 

 is wholly confined to New Zealand, and is nocturnal in its 

 habits, living upon insects and worms. 



Besides the above-mentioned living forms, the order Cursores 

 comprises several gigantic extinct forms, which will be treated 

 of when describing the geological distribution of Birds as a 

 class. 



ORDER IV. RASORES. The fourth order of Birds is that of 

 the Rasores, or Scratchers, often spoken of collectively as the 

 " Gallinaceous " birds, from the old name of " Gallinae," given 

 to the order by Linnaeus. The Rasores are characterised by 

 the convex, vaulted upper mandible, having the nostrils pierced 

 in a membranous space at its base. The nostrils are covered 

 by a cartilaginous scale. The legs are strong and robust, 

 mostly covered with feathers as far as the joint between the 

 tibia and tarso-metatarsus. There are four toes, three in front 

 and one behind, the latter being short, and placed at a higher 

 level than the other toes. All the toes terminate in strong 

 blunt claws suitable for scratching (fig. 176, A). The food of 

 the Scratchers or Gallinaceous birds consists chiefly of hard 

 grains and seeds, and in accordance with this they have a ca- 

 pacious crop and an extremely strong and muscular gizzard. 

 They mostly nidificate, or build their nests, upon the ground, 

 and the more typical members of the order are polygamous. 

 The males take no part in either nidification or incubation, 

 and the young are generally " precocious," being able to run 

 about and provide themselves with food from the moment they 

 quit the egg. The young of the Pigeons and Doves, however, 

 are brought forth in a comparatively helpless condition. The 

 wings in the majority of the Rasores are more or less weak, 

 and the flight is feeble and accompanied with a whirring sound. 

 Many of the Pigeons, however, are capable of very powerful 

 and sustained flight. 



The order Rasores is divided into two sub-orders, called re- 

 spectively the Gallinacei and the Columbacei, or sometimes, 

 from the charactets of the sounds which they utter, the Clama- 

 tores and the Gemitores. 



Sub -order i. Gallinacei or Clamatores. This sub -order 

 comprises the typical members of the order Rasores, such as 

 the common Fowls, Turkeys, Partridge, Grouse, Pea-fowl, and 



