THE FAUNA OF 



SOUTH AFRICA. 



AVES. 



Older VI. STEGANOPODES. 



The members of this Order may be easily diagnosed by a very 

 obvious external character, recognisable at a glance ; the feet 

 are totipalmate, that is, all the toes, including the first, or hallux, 

 which is turned forwards more or less parallel to the other toes, 

 are fully webbed. 



Other anatomical characters are — skull desmognathous ; nasals 

 holorhinal ; mandible not produced and recurved behind its articu- 

 lation with the quadrate ; basipterygoid processes absent, or at 

 any rate rudimentary ; oil-gland tufted ; cseca small ; leg-muscles 

 varying. The young are hatched blind, either naked or downy, 

 and pass through a long helpless stage, during which they are 

 dependent on their parents. 



There are five well-marked families constituting this Order, 

 which contains the birds generally known as Cormorants, Darters, 

 Gannets, Pelicans, Frigate- and Tropic-Birds. Each family consists 

 of only one genus, except the first, to which the Cormorants 

 and Darters are assigned. The relationship of this Order to the 

 others is rather obscure; most authors connect these birds with 

 the Birds of Prey, which they here follow ; but GaTrod and 

 Beddard consider that the Tubinares are more closely allied to 

 them. 



Key of the Genera. 



A. Tail rounded or wedge-shaped ; toes fully 

 webbed. 

 a. Middle tail-feathers not produced ; nostrils 

 more or less rudimentary. 

 1 VOL. IV. 



