Vol. xiv.-| Leach, The Myology of the Bell-Magpie. 37 



1914 J 



character by which the Passeres can be separated from all the 

 rest of the birds." They, however, possess certain characters 

 which are not combined in the same way in a bird of any other 

 order. These characters are referred to in the following 

 summary : — 



In Strepera the ambiens muscle of the thigh is absent. This 

 bird, therefore, belongs to Garrod's sub-class Anomalogonatce 

 (abnormally-kneed). Its muscle formula is A X Y, denoting that 

 the femoro-cmidal, the semitendinosus, and the accessory semi- 

 tendinosus muscles are present. The anomalogonatous birds 

 include the Passeriformes and the Piciformes. Strepera has short 

 cffica on the intestine and has a nude oil-gland. These characters 

 exclude it from the Piciformes, and leave it in the Passeri- 

 formes. 



The second, third, and fourth toes are directed forwards, and 

 the well-developed hallux is directed backwards. The flexor 

 longus hallucis tendon is superficial to, and not united with, the 

 tendon of the flexor perforans digitorum. 



These characters confirm the inclusion of Strepera in the 

 Passeriformes. 



The intrinsic muscles of the syrinx are attached to the ends 

 of the cartilaginous half -rings of the bronchi. Strepera, therefore, 

 belongs to the Acromyodian section of the Passeriformes. 



The tendon of the tensor patagii brevis muscle of the arm joins 

 the extensor metacarpi radialis longior muscle, but does not fuse 

 with the tendon of that muscle. It runs just external to it, to be 

 inserted immediately below the insertion of the extensor metacarpi 

 radialis longior. Strepera is, therefore, a member of the Passeres 

 Normales. Atrichia, the remarkable Australian Scrub-Bird (two 

 species), is the only Acromyodian genus in which the tendon of 

 the tensor patagii brevis differs in its insertion from that of Strepera. 

 In Atrichia the tendon fuses with the tendon of the extensor meta- 

 carpi radialis longior. Atrichia is thus accorded the honour of 

 Sub -division I., Passeres Abnor males. 



Sharpe has, in the catalogue of Passeriformes or Perching Birds 

 in the British Museum, vol. iii. (1877), subdivided the Passeres 

 Normales into "sections," and again into "groups," which are 

 made up of famihes. In his " Hand-list of Birds," however, he 

 did not provide for "sections" or "groups," but divided the 

 Passeres Normales into 48 famihes. Gates, in his notes on Passeres 

 in " The Fauna of British India : Birds," vol. 1., p. 6, said :— 

 "No success has attended the efforts of anatomists to sub- 

 divide the Acromyodi into two or more groups by internal 

 di3.r3.ct6rs ' 



We are concerned with three only of the forty-eight famihes 

 of Sharpe's "Hand-list of Birds." They are :— Family 17, 

 LaniidcB ; family 47, CorvidcB ; and family 48, StrependcB Th&se 

 are shown as follows in " The Hand-list of Birds," Order XXXVl., 

 vol. iii., 1901 : — 



