Affinities of Smithornis. 499 



first to look at the lower end of the trachea and the organ 

 of voice. It was seen at once that the syrinx was bare or 

 nearly bare of muscles lower down than the point where the 

 sterno-tracheal muscles leave the trachea, to go to either 

 anterior lateral process of the sternum. This was confirmed 

 in a considerable number of specimens belonging to all 

 three species of Smithornis ; but I do not feel able to make 

 a full description of the syrinx. Regarding one example of 

 S. sharpei the following note was written down at the time : 

 "Alongside the sterno-tracheal muscles where these leave 

 the trachea, and ventrally from them, run some thin 

 muscular strands continuing on down the trachea to the 

 beginning of the bronchi. These are so thin as to be made 

 out with difficulty, and no other muscles are to be seen on 

 the syrinx.^' Of most of the specimens examined I was 

 content to say that no muscles could be made out attached 

 to the lower end of the trachea or the bronchi. 



DeeiJ Plantar Tendons. — Another discovery was made on 

 dissecting the leg and foot of a specimen of S. camarunensif, 

 and finding the flexor muscles of the toes with their 

 tendons ; a slender vinculum was found running downwards 

 from the tendon of the M.fexor hallucis and joining that 

 of the M. flexor profundus just above the point where the 

 latter divides into branches to the three forward toes. 

 When the tendon of the flexor hallucis was pulled, all the 

 toes were bent, though not quite simultaneously, for the 

 hallux was moved a little in advance of the other toes ; 

 when the tendon of the profundus was pulled, the three 

 forward toes were bent, while the hallux was not moved. 

 This observation was confirmed in a number of cases, with 

 birds belonging to this and the other two species as Avell, 

 and the presence of the vinculum was ascertained either by 

 dissecting the foot so that it could be seen, or by noting the 

 effect on the toes of pulling the tendons. But a bird of the 

 species S. rufolateralis that was skinned on one of the days 

 while this paper was being prepared, seemed to afford an 

 exception, for pulling the tendon of the flexor hallucis 

 affected the hallux onlv, in both feet alike. In this 



