OCR Text |
Show 436 PROF. HUXLEY ON THE CLASSIFICATION OF BIRDS. [Apr. 11, The maxillo-palatines are united across the middle line, either directly or by the intermediation of ossifications in the nasal septum. The posterior ends of the palatines and the anterior ends of the pterygoids articulate directly with the rostrum, as in the preceding division. The desmognathous skull appears under its simplest form in Palamedea and the Lamellirostres. In these birds each maxillo-palatine is a broad, flat, and thin bony plate, which unites with its fellow in the middle line of the palate. The septum may be more Fig. 18. Querquedula crecca. Side and inferior views of the skull and mandible. The letters as before. |