Sphecius 
Blue 
:r-wasp (Chalybion fsruleum}, one 
f the Sphegidse, natural size. 
speciostts, natural size. 
North American solitary wasps, and digs large cylindrical 
burrows which it stores with stung cicadas, particularly 
with the dog-day harvest-fly (Cicada tibicen). 
Sphecotheres (sfe-ko-the'rez), n. [NL. (Vieil- 
lot, 1816, also Sphecotera and Sphecothera), < 
Gr. er0j/f (a<f/K-), a wasp, + th/pav, hunt, chase.] 
One of two leading genera of passerine birds, 
of the family Oriolidse, having the lores and 
circumocular region naked. There are 4 species, 
ranging in Australia, New Guinea, Timor, and the Kei 
Islands. The Australian is S. inaxillarig; the Papuan is 
S. saleadorii ; S. jtamventris inhabits the Kei Islands and 
parts of Australia ; while S. Hindis is found in Timor and 
Semao. Also called Picnorhamphus. 
Sphegidas (sfej'i-de), n. pi. [NL. (Westwood, 
1840), irreg. < SpJtex (Sphec-) + -idseJ] A fam- 
ily of fossorial hymenopters, or digger-wasps. 
The prothorax is 
narrowed ante- 
riorly, and forms 
a sort of neck ; 
the basal seg- 
ment of the ab- 
domen is narrow- 
ed into a long, 
smooth, round 
petiole ; and the 
head and thorax 
are usually cloth- 
ed with a long, 
thin pubescence. 
These wasps usu- 
ally burrow into 
sand-banks, and 
provision their 
cells with cater- 
pillars and spi- 
ders. Eighteen 
genera and about 
three hundred species are known. Also Sphecidse. See 
sand-wasp, and cuts under digger-wasp, Ammophila, mud- 
dauber, and Pelopseus. 
Sphenasacus, . See Sphenosacus. 
sphendone (sfen'do-ne), n. [< Gr. o<t>evfi6vt/, a 
sling, a head-band, ahoop,etc.] InGr.archseol.: 
(a) A form of head-band or fillet worn by women 
to confine the hair around and on the top of the 
head. It is characteristically broad in front and narrow 
behind, being thus opposite in its arrangement to the 
opisthosphendone. (ft) An elliptical or semi-ellip- 
tical area, or any place of kindred form, as the 
auditorium of a theater; that end of a stadium 
which was curved or rounded. 
The Messenian stadium, which is surrounded by colon- 
nades, has 16 rows of seats in the sphendone. 
C. O. Miitter, Manual of Archjeol. (trans.), 290. 
sphene (sfen), . [< F. sphene, in allusion to the 
wedge shape of the crystals, <Gr. aifnjv, awedge.] 
The mineral titanite. The transparent green, green- 
ish-yellow, or yellow varieties frequently exhibit a play of 
colors as brilliant as that of the yellow or green diamond, 
showing a strong refractive and dispersive power on light. 
It is quite soft, the hardness being only 6.5. See titanite. 
sphenethmoid (sfe-neth'moid), a. and n. [< 
sphen(oid) + ethmoid.'] I. a. 1. Of or pertain- 
ing to the sphenoid and the ethmoid bone ; sphe- 
nethmoidal; ethmosphenoid: as, the spheneth- 
moid suture or articulation. 2. Representing 
or combining characters of both sphenoid and 
ethmoid : as, the sphenethmoid bone. 
II. n. The sphenethmoid bone, as of the 
frog's skull : one of the cranial bones, situated 
in front of the parasphenoid. See girdle-bone, 
and cuts under Anurtfl and Bana. 
Also spheno-ethmoid. 
sphenethmoidal (sfe-neth-moi'dal), a. [< sphe- 
iirtliatoifl + -?.] Same as spteneiltmoid Sphe- 
nethmoidal nerve, a branch of the nasal nerve described 
by Liischka as passing through the posterior internal or- 
bital canal to the mucous membrane of the posterior eth- 
moidal cells and the sphenoidal sinus. Called by Krause 
the posterior ethmmdal nerve. 
sphenic (sfe'nik), a. [< Gr. a<l>f/i', a wedge, + 
-iV.] Wedge-like Sphenic number, a number hav- 
ing three unequal factors. 
sphenion (sfe'ni-on), n. [NL., < Gr. a</>r/v, a 
wedge.] The apex of the sphenoidal angle of 
the parietal bone, on the surface of the skull : 
so called by Von Torok. See craniometry. 
spheniscan (sff-nis'kau), n. [< Sphenisctis + 
-dn.] A penguin or spheniscomorph ; espe- 
5823 
cially, a jackass-penguin of the restricted ge- 
nus x/>li<-nir!cii!i. See cut. under N/''"''"'*''"*. 
Spheniscidse (sfe-uis'i-de), . ///. [NL., < *>)</ 
iiiitriix + -idle.] The penguins as a family of 
sqiiamipeiinatc or lirevi|ic>iinati' palmiped na- 
tatorial birds, of the order ri/i/,i/indfi< ; the only 
family of SrjMniseolHOrpheB, Si/mmi'iin mus. /;- 
/'/. v, or Pttiopteri, so strongly marked that 
it is regarded as representing a supcrl'amily, 
order, or even superorder, though formerly in- 
cluded in the Alciiln', or auk family. The wings 
are reduced to flippers, like a seal's or turtle's. They 
hang by the side, and cannot be closed like those of 
nl her birds; in swimming underwater they are Hapi" 'I 
altiTnately with a peculiar motion suggesting that of the 
blades of a screw propeller. They are covered with small 
scaly feathers in which no remiges can be distinguished, 
and their bones are peculiarly flat, and not hollow. The 
feet are four-toed and webbed, with very short broad tar- 
si, the bones of which are more separate than the nu-ta- 
tarsals of any other birds. In walking or standing the 
whole tarsus rests on theground, so that the birds are plan- 
tigrade ; and in swimming under water the feet act mainly 
as rudders. The beak varies in form in different gcuna. 
The plumage is uniformly implanted in the skin, without 
any apteria ; and there is a highly developed system of 
subcutaneous muscles, contributing to the sinuous move- 
ments of the birds under water, suggestive of those of the 
duck-mole. The feathers of the upper parts and wings 
are scaly, with thick, flattened shafts and slight webbing. 
The Spheniscidfe are confined to the southern hemisphere, 
and abound in cold temperate and antarctic waters, espe- 
cially about the southern end of Africa and South America, 
where they live in communities, often of great extent. 
There are about 14 species, one of which reaches Brazil and 
another Peru. The generic forms are Apte?wdytes, the 
king-penguins, of great size, with slender bill ; Pygoscelis, 
a similar but long-tailed type ; Dasyrhamphus, with ex- 
tensively feathered bill ; Eudyptula, of very small size ; 
Eudyptes (or Catarractes), the rock-hoppers, which are 
crested, and hop instead of waddling ; and Spheniscus, the 
jackass-penguins. There is a fossil penguin, Palxeudyp- 
tes antarcticus, from the Tertiary of the west coast of Nel- 
son Island, which was a giant, or 7 feet tall. Apteno- 
dytida is a synonym. See the generic names, Sphenisco- 
morphee, and cuts under Eudyptes, metatarsus, penyuin^, 
Pygoscflis, Spheniscus, and Squamipennes. 
Spheniscinae (sfe-ni-si'ne), n. pi. [NL., < Sphe- 
niscus + -inse.] The penguins : (of) as a sub- 
family of Alcidx; (b) as the only subfamily of 
Spheniscidte. 
spheniscine (sfe-nis'in), . [< Spheniscus + 
-inel.] Of or pertaining to the Sphen iscidse ; 
spheniscomorphic. 
spheniscoid (sfe-nis'koid), a. [< Spheniscus + 
-aid.'] Same as' spheniscomorphic. 
spheniscomorph (sfe-nis'ko-m6rf), n. A pen- 
guin as a member ot the Spheniscomorphas. 
Spheniscomorphse (sfe-nis-ko-m6r'fe), n. pi. 
[NL. (Huxley, 1867), < 'Spheniscus + Gr. poppi/, 
form.] The penguins as a group of schizog- 
nathous carinate birds, represented by the 
single family Spheniscidse. See Spheniscidse. 
spheniscomorphic (sfe-nis-ko-m6r'fik), a. [< 
Spheniscomorphse + -i'c.'] Of or pertaining to 
the Spheniscomorphse. Also spheniscoid. 
Spheniscus (sfe-nis'kus), n. [NL. (Brisson, 
1760), < Gr. ojqvioitet, dim. of o<t>'/v, a wedge.] 
1. In ornith., a genus of penguins, of the fam- 
ily Spheniscidse, having a stout, compressed 
beak hooked at the end, and no crest ; the jack- 
ass-penguins. There are several species, of medium 
size. 5. aemerswi is found off the Cape of Good Hope. It 
sphenographic 
2. In iiiinni.. a genus of heteromerotu 
Ic roils insects, M! the family 'inn lifimtiilu; hir- 
/<//. 1S17. 3. [/. e.] In phenio number, 
sphenobasilar (sfe-no-iias'i-liir), . [< .</;/- 
no(iit) + hiixilnr.\ i !>f or pertaining to the 
liasisplii'iioid and the busioccipital or basilar 
process of the occipital bone; basilar, as the 
suture lictuccn these bones. See cuts under 
ri-ilinnfili-iill. s/.'iill, lil\tl njiln inii'l. 
sphenoccipital (sfe-nok-sip'i-tal), n. [< Kjilir- 
n(oid) + in-i-i)iiliil.\ Of or peHaiiiini: to the 
sphenoid and the occipital bone; oceipitosphr- 
noid ; sphenobasilar. 
Sphenocercus(fe-no-ser'kus), ii. [NL. (<!. li. 
Hi-ay, 1840), < Gr. o<j>f/v, a wedge, + Kepnot, a 
tail."] A genus of fruit-pigeons or '//</, 
having the tail cuneate. Several species inhabit 
parts of Asia, Japan, and the East Indies, as 5. tphenurvs 
Cape Jackass-penyuin (Sfhtniscus de>nersns). 
is bluish-gray or slate-colored above, white below, with a 
dark mask and single collar cut off by a white band from 
the other colored parts, the collar extending as a stripe 
along the sides of the body. The Magcllanic penguin, S. 
mageUanicus, of South America, is similar, but has a dou- 
ble collar. S. humhnldti is another, inhabiting the coast 
of Peru. S. minor is a very small species, only about 12 
inches long, now placed in another genus, Eudyptula. 
Wedge-tailed Pigeon (Spkenoftrcttj sptitn 
of the Himalayan region, S. siebiMi of Japan, S. tarthalsi 
of Sumatra, S. apicauda of Nepal, 5. oxyurug of Java and 
Borneo, S. formoga of Formosa. The genus is also called 
Sphenurus, Sphencenas, and Sphenotreron. 
Sphenodon (sfe'no-don), n. [NL., < Gr. a^r/v, a 
wedge, + Moi'f (bfiovr-) = E. tooth.] 1. In mam- 
mal., a genus of extinct megatherioid edentates, 
or fossil sloths, remains of which occur in the 
bone-caves of South America. Lund, 1839. 
2. In herpet.: (t) A genus of extant rhyn- 
chocephalous lizards of New Zealand. S. punc- 
tatiis is known as the tuatcra. The name is 
synonymous with Hatteria. (6) [I. c.] A lizard 
of this genus. They resemble ordinary lizards exter- 
nally, but have internal characters representative of an 
order (Ithynckocephalia). They are now restricted to cer- 
tain localities in New Zealand, and live chiefly in holes 
in the sand or about stones on certain rocky islets, though 
they were formerly abundant in other places. They have 
been thinned out, it is said, chiefly by hogs. Three species 
are described. See cut under Hatteria. 
sphenodont (sfe'no-dont), a. and n. [< Sjiln- 
nodon(t-).] I. a. Having the character of a 
sphenodon; of or pertaining to the Sphenodnn- 
tidse or Hatteriidx. 
II. n. A sphenodont lizard. 
Sphenodontidae (sfe-no-don'ti-de), n.pl. [NL., 
< Sphenodon(t-) + -idee.'] A family of rhyn- 
chocephalous reptiles, named from the genus 
Sphenodon : same as Hatteriidse. 
sphenodontoid (sfe-no-don'toid), a. and n. [< 
Sphcnodon(t-) + -oirf.] Same as sphenodont. 
Sphenceacus (sfe-ne-a'kus), n. [NL. (Strick- 
land, 1841), < Gr. a^r/v, a wedge, + oiaf (olax-), 
a rudder.] A genus of aberrant reed-warblers, 
of uncertain systematic position. It is remarkable 
in having only ten tail-feathers, which are stiffened with 
spiny shafts, and whose webs are lax and decomposed. 
There are no rictal bristles (as in the related emu-wren : 
see cut under Stipitums). There are 6 species, of South 
Africa, New Zealand, and the Chatham Islands, as S. afri- 
camis, S. punctatvs of New Zealand, and S. rufescens of the 
Chathams. Also Spheneeacus and Sphenura. 
Sphencenas (sfe-ne'nas), . [NL., < Gr. offr; 
a wedge, + oivdf, a wild pigeon of the color of 
ripening grapes, < oivdf, olvii, the vine: gee 
IC/HC.] Same as Sphenoeerciis. 
spheno-ethmoid (sfe-no-eth'moid), a. and . 
Same as sphenethmoid. 
spheno-ethmoidal (sfe"no-eth-moi'dal), a. 
Same as xplicnrthnioidtil. 
sphenofr ontal (sfe-no-fron'tal), a. [< spheno(id) 
+ fronhil.~\ Of or pertaining to the sphenoid 
anil the frontal bone ; frontosphenoid Spheno- 
frontal suture or articulation, in man, a long horizon- 
tal suture between the orbital plates of the frontal bone 
and the orbitosphenoids, and between the external angu- 
lar processes of the frontal and the alisphenoids. 
sphenogram (sfe'no-gram). n. [< Gr. tj^jyv, a 
wedge, + ypa/ifia, a writing, < jpd^efr, write.] 
A cuneiform or arrow-headed character. 
sphenographer (sfe-nog'ra-fer), H. [< sphnioii- 
mpli-i/ + -cr 1 .] One versed in sphenography. 
[Little used.] 
sphenographic (sfe-no-graf 'ik), </. [< tpkenogra- 
ph-y + -i'c.] Of or pertaining to sphenography. 
