VOL. IX. 



The Oologist. 



ALBION, N. Y., FEB., 1892. 



XO. 2 



ZOOTOMY. 



THE DOMESTIC PIGEON. 



In the following notes, the writer 

 does not pretend to put forth anything 

 new, and but little, if anything original. 

 The material has been collected from 

 standard works on the subject and from 

 his own notes taken under competent 

 instructors, and dissections made dur- 

 ing the last year. He only hopes to 

 give a few, or perhaps many young 

 students an introduction to one of the 

 most interesting of studies. These notes 

 can be of no interest to the student 

 who does not perform the work as in- 

 dicated. A mere reading of them would 

 be as fruitless and uninteresting as the 

 readiug of Dr. Jordan's "Manual of the 

 Vertebrates"without seeing a specimen. 

 A bird has been chosen as the subject, as 

 it is supposed that most readers of the 

 Oologist are interested in birds. 

 While these notes will apply in a gen- 

 eral way to the class, yet the student 

 must not lose sight of the fact that 

 comparisons are very important and 

 should be made whenever opportunity 

 is presented. Many interesting pecul- 

 iarities will be noted in the comparative 

 anatomy, "internal" as well a "exter- 

 nal," of the Simicolae, Galiinse, Rap- 

 tores, Passeres and others. The Pigeon 

 is selected on account of the compara- 

 tive ea<e of obtaining specimens as well 

 as the convenient size of the bird. 



The implements absolutely needed to 

 make a successful dissection are few 

 and simple. A scalpel, a pair of fine 

 pointed scissors, small forceps, blow- 

 pipe, a hand lens and several dissecting 

 needles made by forcing the eye-end of 

 a large needle into a soft stick of con- 

 venient size. Probes made by dipping 

 the ends of large bristtles into hot seal- 

 ing wax. The small drop of wax, on 

 cooling will make a Tittle ball which 

 will prevent the probe "going wrong."* 

 Pen, pencil, ink, dividers and a good 

 quality of drawing paper together with 

 the note book must never be wanting. 

 Not only should the student verify all 

 notes in this article, but careful draw- 

 ings of all dissections should be made. 

 First, lightly drawn with a hard lead 

 pencil and then traced with ink, re- 

 membering that exactness is more im- 

 portant than ornament. 



With the aid of dividers all drawings 

 should be made on an exact scale; nat- 

 ural size when convenient. Do not at- 

 tempt a drawing until the dissection has 

 been put in the best possible shape, and 

 all the characteristics have been made 

 out. Make your dissections on a table 

 facing a window so that no shadows 

 will bother. Although we have not 

 space to pay much attention to exter- 

 nal peculiarities of the pigeon, we can- 



* A pair of bone-crushing forceps, heavy 

 scissors, cartilageijknife. an injecting syringe, 

 &c, may be used to great advantage, 



EXPLANATION OF PLATE. Domestic Pigeon Columbia livia. (Pen-drawing fr 

 tions. i Fig. I. Head showing cere, &c. Fig. II. Brain, from above, a. olf actorj c cere- 



bral hemispheres, .m, pineal body. s. optic lobes, e, cerebellum, n. medula oblongata. F 

 c, cerebral hemispheres, m. pineal body. a. olfactory lobe. e. cerebellum, s. optic lobes, m, 

 medula oblongata, n. roots of nerves." x. optic tracts, o. flocculus. Fig. IV. Half of heart, 

 v. left ventricle, n, aorta, s, v. semi-lunar valves. v\ right ventricle, a. u. v, right auriculo- 

 vemricular valve, a. left auricle. (The section was so made that the connection between this and 

 ventricle is not shown, i a', right auricle. Fig. V. Male sexual and urinary organs. xVj. a, testis 

 in place, e. kidney, s. ureter, n. vas deferens, o, vesicula seminalis. c. cloaca, m. iliac vein, o, 

 femoral vein. Fig. VI.Half of gizzard, c, thick muscular walls of same a.horny epithelial lining, m. 

 entrance of digestive canal, the proventriculus. s. duodenum, n. pyloris (opening into duodrntim. 

 Pig. VII. Cross section of brain showing (a) folds of cerebrum and (e) arbor vitae. [This last 

 (VII) from fresh brain.] Fig. VIII. Lower part of trachae and bronchial tubes. Fig. IX. n, 

 coeca. a. rectum, c, small intestine. 



