640 MR. W. A. FORBES ON THE [May 17, 



in his paper on the nasal bones of birds \ says that " Farm should 

 be removed to the Charadriomorphse " from the Rallidse, on account 

 of the schizorhinal nature of its skull, as represented in the figure of 

 that of Pan-a {Hydralector) cristata on p. 34 of his 'paper. In his 

 subsequent paper on the muscles of the thigh in birds^ Parra (i. e. 

 Metopidius) fifricana is placed amongst the " Grallse," with the 

 other Charadriine or Scolopacine forms, and not included in the 

 Rallidae. It will be my object in the present paper to still further 

 strengthen this latter view of the affinities of the Parridse^. 



Pterylosis. 



Nitzsch, in his * Pterylography,' places Rallus, Crex, PorpJiyrio, 

 and Parra as members of a group of the Fulicariae, characterized 

 by the narrow form of the tracts, by the presence of a distinct outer 

 branch to the inferior tract, and by the dorsal tract being "neither 

 interrupted nor strikingly weakened " between the shoulder-blades. 

 He says (/. c. p. 126): — "The first three [genera] have twelve tail- 

 feathers, and exactly the same pterylosis as that figured as occurring 

 in Rallus aquaticiis. In Parra, of which I have examined all the 

 four principal species (sinensis [i. e. Hydrophasianus chirurgus~\, 

 cenea, africana, and jassana), I found only ten tail-feathers, and a 

 remarkable narrowing of the bands of the dorsal tract close be- 

 hind the shoulder-blades ; whilst, on the other hand, the hindmost, 

 or pelvic portion of it, was dilated. This genus has also weaker 

 lumbar tracts ; and these are united with the uropygial portion of 

 the dorsal tract by sparse contour-feathers." As Nitzsch himself 

 later on says that the pterylosis of the "Limicolse" closely ap- 

 proaches that of the Rallinse, and is but little modified from that type, 

 the evidence from pterylosis of the Ralline affinities of the Jaganas is 

 not very strong. In their possession of well-marked firm rectrices, 

 in the weakness of the lumbar tracts, and in the tendency to a divi- 

 sion of the dorsal tract into an anterior and a posterior fork, the 

 Parridse differ from the typical Rallidse, and approach the Limico- 

 line type. The same relationship is indicated bj the inner, or main, 

 pectoral tract, though very narrow, consisting, at least at its com- 

 mencement, of two or three rows of feathers in the Parridse, as well 

 as in the Charadriidse ; whereas in the typical Rallidse, according to 

 Nitzsch, it issues from the branch as only a single row of feathers. 



Visceral Anatomy, ^c. 



The tongue is long and narrow in shape, thin, and of horny con- 

 sistency. Its apex is slightly notched, and its base spinulose ; for 

 the greater part of its length it is strongly concave. The oeso- 

 phagus develops no crop ; and the proventriculus is zonary. There 



^ " Ou the Value in Classification of a Peculiarity in the Anterior Margin of 

 the Nasal Bones of certain Birds," P. Z. S. 1873, pp. 33-78. 



" P. Z. S. 1873, pp. 626-644. 



' Besides Metopidius africantcs, Prof. Garrod dissected a specimen of Hy- 

 drophasianus chirurgus ; and some MS. notes of his on that species I have 

 incorporated in what follows. 



