52 MR. F. E. EEDDARD ON A GIRAFFE. [Feb. 4, 



event, but it has already occurx^ed on two previous occasions in 

 the Society's Menagerie (c/. P. Z. S. 1861, p. 62, pi. xii.). 



Mr. F. E. Beddai-d, F.R.S., laid before the Meeting the neck- 

 vertebrje of a young male Giraffe [Gamelopardalis giraffa) which 

 had died in the Society's Gardens on Jan. 8th, and made the 

 following remarks : — 



It will be remembered that this animal in life showed a per- 

 manent bend in the neck, which was slight and hardly noticeable 

 at the time of its arrival, but increased greatly before the time of 

 its death. After death the neck-vertebrfe were carefully cleaned 

 and have revealed the causes of this bend, which undoubtedly 

 pressed upon the spinal cord. There was no tumour of any kind, 

 bony or otherwise, the existence of which might possibly have 

 been presupposed from the external appearance of the neck. 

 The bend in the neck was in fact related to the following condition 

 of the cervical vertebrae. 



The vertebrae chiefly affected — but, as will be seen presently, 

 not the only ones affected— are the fovirth and fifth. These two 

 vertebi-fe are in the first place firmly ankylosed together so as to 

 be perfectly immovable the one upon the other. The bend 

 occurs in this region, and is produced by these two vertebrae which 

 lie in relation to each other at an angle of nearly 90°, This bend 

 is due to an overgrowth on one side of these vertebrae, the left, 

 and a cessation of growth on the other side. This overgrowth 

 mainly concerns, so far as I can make out, the epiphyses 

 of the vertebrae in question. The general appearance produced 

 is that both vertebi-ae are shorter in relation to the adjacent 

 vertebrae than the normal. I have observed that the fourth and 

 fifth vertebrae are the two which have been mainly affected. Of 

 these the fourth is more altered than the fifth. The neural 

 spine of the foui-th vei-tebra is cvirved towards the left in relation 

 to the curvature of the whole vertebra ; that is to say, the 

 convex border of the curve is on the left side. In addition to 

 this the spine itself is bent over to the opposite side, i. e. to the 

 right, and forms a cavity deep enough to hide the first finger. 

 Such a bending of the vertebral spine does not occur in the case 

 of the fifth vertebra. 



It is interesting to notice that the adjacent vertebrae have 

 made an attempt, so to speak, to rectify the curvature caused by 

 the injury to the fovirth and fifth vertebrae. This state of affairs 

 is naturally seen in the most marked degree in the two vertebrae 

 immediately adjacent to those which have been injured. 

 Particularly is this the case with the third vertebra. This 

 vertebra is bent, bvit in the opposite direction to the fourth ; it 

 is the left side which is concave. The spine too is curved in the 

 same direction, and there is a slight concavity formed in the same 

 way by a bending over of the spine. This, however, lies on the 

 left side and not on the right as is the case with the fourth 

 vertebra. Even the axis vertebra is slightly asymmetrical, and a 



