THE PIGEON. 107 



2. Below this is the leg proper, or drumstick. 



3. The next division is the tarsus ; it is a consolidation 

 of several bones that were distinct in the young bird ; 

 this part of the bird's leg, then, really corresponds 

 to the tarsus and metatarsus of the human foot, or 

 that part between the ankle and the toes. Where, 

 then, is the true heel ? 



4. Bend and extend the toes to find how many bones 

 there are in each. 



5. The scales on the front of the tarsus are called 

 scutella; hence the tarsus of the pigeon is said to 

 be scutellate in front; the back of the tarsus of the 

 pigeon is reticulated. 



THE TAIL. 



1. Count the quills of the tail; spread the tail to see 

 their mode of overlapping; make a diagram to show 

 their mode of overlapping as seen from behind; com- 

 pare the middle and outer tail-feathers. 



2. The feathers which lap over the base of the tail are 

 the upper and lower tail-coverts. 



3. Raise the upper tail-coverts, to find the conical tip of 

 the outlet of the oil-gland ; press the oil-gland to get 

 a drop of oil. 



4. In front of the lower tail-coverts is the anus. 



THE FEATHERS. 



1. Pull out one of the large wing-quills and study its 

 parts; the central axis is the shaft; the expanded 

 part is the vane ; the side branches of the shaft are 

 the barbs., and the side branches of the barbs are the 



