Ornithology. 35 



taste of various writers on the subject. We shall here give 

 Montagu's description ; but that this and similar ones may be 

 better understood, we shall premise an explanation of the 

 terms commonly employed in describing a bird. The figures 

 prefixed to the terms refer to plate ii. 



1. Maxilla superior, the upper mandible of the bill. 2. 

 Maxilla inferior, the lower mandible of the bill. 3. Culmen, 

 the ridge of the bill. 4. Gonys, the angle or point of the 

 under mandible. 5. Dertrum, the hook of the bill. 6. 

 JVares, the nostrils. 7. Mesorhinium, the upper edge of the 

 bill. 8. Lorum, the bone, a naked space at the bill. 9. 

 Mentum, the chin. 10. Frons, the forehead. 11. Vertex, 

 the crown of the head. 12. Sinciput, the hinder part of the 

 head. 13. Capistrum, the face. 14. Supercilium, the eye- 

 brow. 15. Rigio ophthalmica, the region of the eye. 16. 

 Tempora, the temples. 17. Gena, the cheek. 18. Regio 

 parotica, the parts about the ear. 19. Collum, the neck. 

 20. Cervix, the hinder part of the neck. 21. Nucha, the 

 nape of the neck. 22. Auchenium, the under nape of the 

 neck. 23. Guttur, the throat. 24. Gula, the gullet. 25. 

 Jugulum, the lower throat. 26. Pectus, the breast. 27. 

 Epigastrum, the stomach. 28. Abdomen. 29. Hypochon- 

 dria, the sides of the abdomen. 30. Venter, the belly. 31. 

 Crissum, the vent. 32. Dorsum, the back. 33. Interscapu- 

 lum, space between the shoulders. 34. Tergum, the middle 

 of the back. 35. Uropygium, the rump. 36. Humeri, the 

 shoulders. 37. Flexura, the bend of the wing. 38. Axilla, 

 the armpit. 39. Ala, the wing. 40. Tectrices, the wing 

 coverts. 41. Tectrices majores, the largest wing coverts. 

 42. Tectrices minores, the smallest wing coverts. 43. Tec- 

 trices medi(B, the middle coverts. 44. Remiges, the rowers. 

 45. PrimaricR, the quills. 46. SecundaricB, secondaries. 47. 

 Cauda, the tail. 48. Rectrices, the tail feathers, divided into, 

 49. Intermedice, the middle, and, 50. Laterales, the side 

 feathers. Crus, the leg, divided into, 51. Tibia, the thigh, 

 answering to the leg in quadrupeds. 52. Planta, or Pes, the 

 foot, divided into, 53. Tarsus, the shank, answering to the 

 heel in quadrupeds, 54. Acrotarsium, the shin, 55. Hallux, 

 the great toe, 56. Digiti, the toes. 



Wings of Birds. The wing of a bird consists of five 

 principal joints, with small auxiliary ones, as represented by 

 plate ii. and by a comparison with the human arm, or the 

 fore leg of a quadruped, we shall find there is a considerable 

 similarity. The joints a, b and c answer to the phalanges of 

 the fingers ; d corresponds with the metacarpus, having two 



