458 Vertebrata. 



and broad, the small hind toe turned forwards : the tail is very short : the 

 feathers are evenly distributed over the body. They live in the Southern 

 Hemisphere. 



6. Anseres (Lamellirostres). Large, usually broad, bill, high at the base, 

 flattened at the tip ; most of the beak is covered by soft skin, only at the tip is 

 there a hard, homy plate ; along the edges of the jaw there is a series of small, 

 usually laminate, processes ; thick, soft tongue ; small hind toe. 



(a) Ducks (Anatinx). Small anserine forms with short neck and broad, flat 

 bill with a small horny plate ; the male more brightly coloured than the female ; 

 undergo a seasonal change of coloiir. Birds of Passage. Among a number of Ducks 

 occurring in Great Britain the following may be noted : the Wild Duck {Anas 

 boschas), ancestor of the Domestic Duck; the Common Shield rake or 

 Stock Annet {A. tadorna); the Pintail Duck [A. acuta), a regular 

 winter visitor; the Teal [A. crecca); the G-arganey {A. querquedula) ; 

 the Shoveller or Spoon-bill Duck {A. dypeata), in which the biU is 

 very large and provided with long laminse at its edge. Many Ducks breed in 

 England, but others, e.g., the Widgeon {A. penelope), only, or usually, in more 

 Northern Countries. The FuUguUnx diEEer from the Ducks in the possession 

 of a small flap of skin, which projects from the hind toe ; further in the power 

 of diving : they are mostly northern forms, several occur on the English coasts : 

 the Tufted Duck {Fuligula cristata); the Staup Duck [F. marila). To 

 this division belong the Eider Ducks {Somateria mollissima), which breed 

 on the Faroes, in Iceland and Greenland in great numbers. The Mergansers 

 (Merginse, genus Mergus and others), differ from the PuligttlinaB in the 

 narrow beak, hooked at the tip and furnished with dentiform processes at the 

 edge. Several species in England. 



(6) Geese (Anserinse). Large, fairly long-necked, and long-legged, with- 

 out flaps of skin on the hind toe, beak high at the base and with a large 

 homy plate at the tip. In contradistinction to other LamelHi-ostres, which 

 feed either upon animals or are omnivorous. Geese feed chiefly on plants> 

 grazing vsdth their bills ; they live upon land much more than do the others. 

 Usually there is no striking sexual dimorphism. The Grey Goose (Anser 

 cinereus), the ancestor of the Domestic Goose ; the Red-breasted Goose 

 (A. ruficollis) ; the Bean Goose {A. segetum), and others occur in Britain. 



(c) Swans (Cygnus). Large, very long-necked, but short-legged; the 

 hind toe without a flap of skin, bill high at the base, flattened at the tip. In 

 Temperate and Frigid Zones ; those of the Northern Hemisphere, white ; those of 

 the Southern, partially or entirely, black. Amongst others the Whistling 

 Swan or Wild Swan {C. musicus), a,nd the Mute Swan (C oZor), occur 

 in. England; the latter is frequently kept as a tame animal. The Black 

 Swan (C. atratus) inhabits Australia. 



{d) Flamingoes {Phmnicopterus) are, with regard to their very long fore- 

 legs and metatarsals, like the Grallatores ; the neck is extraordinarily long ; 

 the beak looks as if broken, othei-wise like that of the Ducks ; tongue 

 soft and large; web present. One species of this large Bird inhabits 

 Mediterranean lands, wading about on the coasts. 



Order 6. GrallatorCS {JFadinff birds). 



Tlie members of ttis group have pedes grallarii; the lower 

 portion of the leg is naked, scutellate, the metatarsus long ; there is 

 usually no web, although this is present in exceptional cases. The 

 head is small, the beak usually long and narrow. The neck long. 



