THE SKULL IN THE WOODPECKERS AND WRYNECKS. 13 



On the Palatal Structures of Hernilophus fulvus. 



This Celebesian species, from Mr. Salvia's collection, is about the size of our native 

 Gecinus viridis ; it presents some modifications of great interest. In many respects the 

 description of the last species would serve for this ; but the practised eye soon detects a 

 number of modifications. The rudimentary basipterygoids (Plate III. fig. 1, b.pg) are 

 sharper and more divergent ; the part answering to the " os uncinatum " (o. u) has less 

 suborbital development, but is more distinct in outline. The anterior border of the 

 " meso-ethmoid " is somewhat sharper than in Gecinus ; the nasal septum and the rest of 

 the labyrinth are ossified to nearly the same degree. The three palatal bands of the prse- 

 maxillary (fig. 1 px) are all fused together by bony deposit ; and this excess of ossifica- 

 tion has filled in the angle between the side of the palatine and the end of the prae- 

 maxillary palatine plate. Opposite the sharp interpalatine spurs (i.pa) there is a 

 mass of cartilage, not seen, in this form at least, in any dissection of mine, in the other 

 "Picidse." This is evidently two flat plates that have coalesced at the mid line (fig. 2, 

 I. c), and then, becoming carinate below, send forwards a blunt, and backwards a sharp 

 spur. The septo-maxillary bones are strongly attached to, but are not grafted upon, this 

 cartilage. Here we have the vomerine cartilages of the Wren, developed only on their 

 front portion, not metamorphosed into part of the vomerine bar, but distinct as in the 

 Rhea. As to the morphological meaning of this double cartilage, I am fairly satisfied 

 that it answers to a pair of upper labials. In front of the shoulders of this cartilage 

 there is, on each side, a falciform septo-maxillary; it reaches to where the praem ax- 

 illary style has coalesced with the inner edge of the palatine. Behind the broad end of 

 the right-hand style there are four bony grains ; on the left side there is one larger and 

 one smaller grain. All these are strongly tied to the interpalatine style, to the labial 

 cartilage, and to the rounded fore end of each true " vomer." These latter bones («) 

 reach from the septo-maxillary grains to the short snags of the " ethmo-palatine " (e.pa). 

 They are bowed inwards, as in the embryo of the Passerines, have a thick lower and a 

 crested upper edge ; they are free in front, but anchylosed behind. 



Between these, behind, I find one "median septo-maxillary" (m. s.mcc) attached to 

 the base of the free edge of the ethmoid. It is probable that the larger posterior septo- 

 maxillary on the left side was once three grains of bones, and that each vomer ossified 

 from two points, as in Gecinus. Anyhow this is as curious a piece of facial morphology 

 as any to be seen in the whole range of the vertebrata, and makes the observer very 

 cautious of predicting what he shall or shall not find. The palatine arch is, on the 

 whole, so closely like that of the green species, that it requires no fresh description ; the 

 small " palato-maxillary " (p.mx) on the left side is very similar to that of Gecinus. 



On the Palatal Structures o/"Picus analis. 



Mr. Salvin's rich Neotropical collection has supplied me with a Javan Woodpecker 

 intermediate in size between our native P. minor and P. major. In Picus analis the 

 fore edge of the " basitemporal " plate (Plate III. fig. 3, b.t) is elegantly trilobate, the 

 outer enlargements being partly due to the presence of rudimentary basipterygoids. 



