INTRODUCTION. 
viii 
b. Chin-angle not produced in front of the nasal aperture ; hallux not 
exceeding’ the middle toe and claw, when measured as above ; 
outer toe longer than the inner one ; nares pervious ; no ossified nasal 
septum; palatines with the postero-external angle produced; first 
primary shorter than the inner secondaries PTILONORHYNCHIDCE. 
Fig. 5. Fig. 6. 
Fig. 5. — Ventral aspect of skull of Ptilonorhynchus violaceus (slightly enlarged). 
Fig. 6. — Plantar surface of foot of PElurcedus crassirostris, from dried specimen, to show the proportions of the toes. 
[From specimens in the British Museum.] 
The genus Loria , which I have placed among the Ptilonorhynchidce, may yet turn out to he a true 
Bird of Paradise when its osteology is known ; but specimens of the single species of the genus are so rare 
in collections that I have not been able to examine the skull ! 
All the members of the families Paradiseidce and Ptilonorhynchidce are remarkable for the strength of 
their feet, and the scutellation of the tarsus seemed at one time to offer a character for the differentiation 
of certain genera ; but I have found this feature in the tarsus to break down utterly. To make sure of 
the worth of this character, I asked Mr. H. Gronvold, an expert friend, to examine the specimens in the 
British Museum, so as to check the correctness of my identifications. The result is that we found 
the tarsus seutellated in front in the genera Ptilorhis and Drepananaoc , plain in Seleucides and Drepanomis. 
Epmachus meyeri has a seutellated tarsus, while E. speciosus has a plain tarsus. After this we gave 
up the scutellation of the tarsus as a character of value in the Paradiseklce ! 
The shape of the posterior extremities of the palatine bones, as seen in the ventral aspect of the 
skull, which varies in the families Corvidce, Paradiseklce , and Ptilonorhynchidce , is apparently of some 
importance. 
The following synopsis represents my present conclusions as to the classification of the Birds of Paradise 
and the Bower-Birds. 
