﻿DR. J. MURIE ON THE THREE-BANDED ARMADILLO. 115 



endin*^ in tendons somewhat fused to the last. They arise chiefly from the sigmoid notch 

 under the first-mentioned muscular division. 5. This, the shortest and deepest division, 

 arises from the whole of the interosseous memhrane and posterior surface of the shaft of the 

 fibula. It has a more muscular insertion than the others into the entire hreadth of the 

 proximal end of the palmar ossicle, but deeper than the foregoing. The palmar bone in 

 question is about 0'5 inch long, 0"3 inch broad at its upper end, where widest, and 0*2 

 inch in ""reatest thickness. It is heart-shaped ; the proximal end is bifid, or with well- 



marked tuberosities ; the distal extremity has a blunt apex. Superficially it is convex, 

 but deeply concave or with a longitudinal broad mesial furrow. 



As already intimated, three tendons are derived from its digital extremity; these 

 proceed respectively to the toes. The middle one is enormously broad, thick, and cor- 

 respondingly powerful, the others much less so, though strong. Then* length bears a 

 ratio to that of the digit, the innermost being longest. In all three toes secondary 

 sesamoid ossicles are developed over the joint at the root of the clawed phalanx ; but the 

 middle tendon alone possesses within its substance an additional tiny sesamoid, which is 



situate close to the palmar bone. 



Six most competent anatomists, viz. Meckel, Cuvier, Owen ', Huxley, Macalister, and 

 Galton, have investigated the preceding complex and remarkable muscle in the fore limb 

 of Bim/pus. The account rendered by the last-mentioned author is the most critical in 

 detail, though the Prench savant' s illustrations have an inherent diagrammatic value, 

 and Owen's terse summary catches at the gist of the thing. It appears to me that what 

 is recognized as suhlimis includes my long palmar ; and while Cuvier. Owen, and Galton 



state it to have two, Meckel adds a third pollicial tendon. My 2nd, 3rd, and 4th 



divisions are Galton's 1st muscular mass &c. of flex. prof, dig., and Owen's two portions 

 of same. My 5th part more nearly corresponds to Owen's 3rd portion (longus pol- 

 licis) and Galton's 2nd, with its accessory parts. Mve terminal tendons are given off 

 from the palmar ossicle. Allowing for difference of diction and homological rclatiou of 

 parts, it results that this compound muscle in Dmypus beai-s close agrccmen with that of 

 Tolypeutes, the latter necessarily being deficient in pollicial tendon In Chla..ydaphon^ 

 the muscular bellies are a counterpart of the preceding, Ilyrtl being m d°ubt as to 

 division of long palmar and sublimis, the palmar aponeurosis, however, dividmg to the 

 four outer digits. Of the tendons derived from the palmar ossicle, he remarks =- 

 " Plexor digitorum brevis, quorum singuU digiti, excepto poUice, binos °^t;^<=''t- /^ 

 manner of dirital ensheathments and absence of true perforated tendons all these authors 



a 



less or more agree to 



ss ur mure ai^rce lu. , , -.^ ^„r»;cfnT.nrl 



After having dissected the feet, a mishap befel them ere my notes were duly re .stered 

 concerning the smaU deep muscles. I clearly made out s rong J-*^^"^"/ J^J^ 

 flexores breves. These were fewer in number than specified by Galton in Dasypu. , but 

 in absence of precision I omit further notice of them. 



1 (( 



already 



Osteology of the Weasel-headed Armadillo 



Q2 



