OCR Text |
Show 692 ON THE ANATOMY OF CERTAIN PARROTS. [June 20, the walls, instead of being, as is usually the case, thick and glandular, are strikingly thin, at the same time that no glands are visible. Dr. Meyer has already* given a short description of the peculiarities of the tongue, and, in writing to me, tells me that he has further observations to make on the same. ,.,.', ... As in nearly all birds, the main artery of the thigh is the sciatic, whilst the vein is the femoral. _ There is a fenestra near the posterior margin of the sternum, on Pf-ip n SKJG 2 Deroptyus accipitrinus. A Brazilian specimen of this rather peculiar eenus from the Society's collection has the two carotids arranged as in Dasyptilus, the left being superficial The furcula is of fair size, the orbital ring incomplete, the oil-gland well tufted, the ambiens muscle absent. . . 3 Polytelesbarrabandvipo^esses two carotids, normally situated-in other words, side by side in the hypapophysial canal. The furcula is small and slender. The oil-gland is decidedly large, and well tufted. There is no ambiens muscle. The intestines measured 40 inches. 4. Chalcopsitta scintillata has the two carotids normally situated, a small furcula, a small tuft to the large oil-gland, and no ambiens muscle. The intestines measured 37 inches. 5. Coryphilus fringillaceus has the two carotids normal, the furcula smail and slender, no ambiens muscle, and a well-tufted oil-gland. This specimen was kindly given me by Canon Tristram, carbohzed and dry. Of genera which have already passed through my hands I have had the following additional species : - Ara militaris. Licmetis tenuirostris. Cacatua moluccensis. Lorius domicilla. philippinarum. Paocephalus meyeri. Eclectus grandis. Tanyynathus albirostris. Eos reticulata. They all agree with those species previously dissected, except Licmetis tenuirostris, which has only one carotid, the left, whereas L. pastinator has two. lt will be interesting to verify this difference between the South-Australian species and its more western ally ; for the uncertainty of the disposition of these vessels in the Cacatuinae is rendered more striking if it is correct. In the specimen dissected, of Cacatua philippinarum, a gall-bladder was present. This is the only case in which I have seen this viscus in any Parrot. Formulating the varying characters of the above newly dissected genera upon the principle adopted in my earlier paper and there explained, the formulae run thus :- (1) Dasyptilus 2. - . + . + . (4) Chalcopsitta 2.-. + .A- (2) Deroptyus A - . + . + . (5) Coryphilus 2.-. + . + . (3) Potyletes 2. - . + .4-. Such being the case, Dasyptilus and Deroptyus fall into m y subfamily Pyrrhurinae, whilst the other three must be placed with the Palaeornithinae. lt is interesting to notice that Deroptyus agrees with Pyrrhura, and not with Conurus. * Mittheil. aus dem k. zoologischen M u s e u m zu Dresden, 187>r), p. 14. |