130 M. A. Milne-Edwards on the Ancient Fauna 



to establish with strict precision the natural affinities of this 

 lost type, and to assign it its true zoological position. 



The Ajylianajjieryx or Poule rouge au bee de Becasse is not 

 a gallinaceous bird, nor does it belong to the natural group of 

 Av4aich the Apteryx is now the only living representative ; it 

 is not a Rail properly so called, but it must take its place side 

 by side with the Australian genus Ocydromus. 



The lower mandible, in its general form, resembles that of 

 the curlews, ibises, and certain passerine birds, such as Pro- 

 merops^ Xiphorhynchus^ Falculia, and Dendrocolaptes ; but the 

 osteological characters furnished by the arrangement of the 

 articular surface, and by the form of what I have denominated 

 t\\Q piostdentary fissure, do not allow us to regard this bone as 

 belonging to any passerine or gallinaceous bird, or to any of 

 the genera of Grallse which I have just mentioned ; nor do its 

 characters remove it less from Apteryx ; and to find a more 

 comf)lete resemblance we must compare this beak with that of 

 Ocydromus. 



In order to avoid making this statement too long, I must 

 suppress here all descriptive details, which will be found in 

 the memoir which I deposit upon the bureau of the Academy. 

 I shall confine myself to adding that if, from the structure of 

 this part of the head, we seek to explain the habits and diet 

 of the bird to which it belongs, we shall see that the absence, 

 or at least the slight development, of the foramina and little 

 channels for the passage of nerves and vessels will not allow 

 us to ascribe to it the habits of the ibises, curlews, godwits, or 

 snipes. This pointed beak of very dense tissue somewhat 

 resembles that of Porpliyrio and Ocydromus^ and reminds us 

 still more of the conformation of the mandibles in the oyster- 

 catchers ; it seems to be perfectly adapted for breaking the 

 shells and resisting envelopes of the animals on which the 

 Aphanapteryx probably fed. 



It is sufficient to glance at the metatarsus to be convinced 

 that it is derived from a bird admirably constructed for walk- 

 ing ; it is perfectly balanced, and, without being too massive, 

 is very robust. Its characters indicate most clearly that it 

 cannot be derived from a bird of prey or from a passerine or 

 natatory bird. It has belonged to a walking bird, and in its 

 general form as well as in several of its characters it approaches 

 that of the Gallinaceai ; nevertheless it is impossible to refer 

 it to that group. In fact I have ascertained that in all the 

 Gallinaceae, without exception, the flexor muscle belonging to 

 the hind toe is inserted upon a deeply hollowed surface of 

 the posterior face of the heel bounded by very prominent 

 crests, In nearly all the birds of this group, even in those 



