OSTEOLOGY OF BIRDS 



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OSTEOLOGY OF THE GALLIXAE 



During the past 20 years or more I have contributed a number of 

 illustrated papers to the Osteology of various groups of gallinaceous 

 birds, both existing and fossil. Some of these have been rather 

 extensive, as those on the Tetraonidae of North America ; on the 

 turkeys; and on Gall us bankiva of India, and other-. 

 The more important of these will be cited or quoted from to a 

 greater or less extent in the present treatise. 



So large is this group of birds, however, that it will not be prac- 

 ticable for me to deal with the osteology of all of its several families 

 in this place, much as I should like to do so. To give some idea 

 of our present knowledge of the number of species referred by 

 some to this group I would say that in his Hand -List of Birds 

 (1899) Dr R. Bowdler Sharpe considers them an order (II) of his 

 scheme of classification, and designates it as the order Galli formes. 

 This is primarily divided into three suborders, viz, the Megapodii 

 (I), the Graces (II), and the Phasiani (III). 



The first of these is made to contain but the one family Mega- 

 podiidae, and to it are relegated seven genera of existing birds, the 

 whole containing about 24 species, 17 of which are in the genus 

 Megapodius. 



The Craces (suborder II) likewise contain but the one family 

 Cracidae, and in it are arrayed 1 1 genera, including about 59 species. 



The Phasiani ( suborder III) contains a host of forms, and 

 Sharpe has divided it into no less than five families, which are the 

 Tetraonidae (1), (12 genera, 46 species); the Phasianidae (2). 

 (51 genera, some extinct, about 244 species); the Numididae (3), 

 (5 genera, 23 species) ; the Meleagridae (4), (2 genera, 5 species) ; 

 and the Odontophoridae (5), (11 genera, 72 species). This enum- 

 eration does not take into consideration the fossil or extinct species. 

 It nevertheless accounts for about 473 species, and of these I have 

 examined osteologically principally the Xorth American forms. 

 Still I have a large collection of the skeletons of the Tetraonidae. 

 including a few foreign forms, and I have wild turkeys, with 

 Ortalis among the Cracidae. Much osteological material, too. rep- 

 resenting this extensive group of birds, is contained in the collections 

 of the United States National Museum, and this has been by that 

 institution, kindly placed at my disposal. In a treatise of the pres- 

 ent pretentions, however, it would be obviously impracticable, even 



