4 



PIGEONS. 



The chief organs of motion in the pigeon are the wings, which are very powerful 

 when compared with the size and strength of the birds. In form they are 

 long and pointed, differing essentially from the short rounded concave wings of 

 the ordinary gallinaceous birds. 



The wings are well adapted to urge the bird through the air in its long-sustained 

 flight, which sometimes aj^proaches a speed of three miles a minute, and has been 

 kept up for eight consecutive hours at an average speed of forty-five miles an hour. 

 The bones of the wing are shown in Figure I., where a represents the scapula 



FIG. I. — BONES OF THE W[NG OF THE PIGEON. 



a. Scapula or blade-bone ; 6 c. Humerus or arm-bone ; c d. Radius andulna, bones and fore-arm ; g. Index finger ; 



g ef. Bones of band. 



or blade-bone, lying over the ribs on the back. To this is attached, by a movable 

 joint, the arm-bone or humerus, extending from b to c ; then follows the fore-arm 

 or portion of the wing from c to d, this is formed of two bones, the ulna and radius ; 



d * 



FIG. II. PRI3IAKT AND SECONDARY FEATHERS IN THE WING OF THE PIGEON. 



from d to / are the bones which correspond with those of the human hand — the 

 email pointed bone g being the first finger. The second figure shows very clearly 



31 



