OCR Text |
Show 258 PROF. HUXLEY ON THE CRANIAL [Apr. 6. mandible is very strong, thickened, and more or less mcurvedjrt. its free margin. The angular process is strong and projects inwar<Uy as a horizontal shelf like prominence which i s n ™ " * " " ' " that it somewhat resembles the bowl of a spoon ^-^'V-^h The posterior margin of the bony palate ta-n^JjJ tbe lineof the hindmost molars. The line of the cheek-teeth „ ^ o t angulated at the junction of the upper sectorial with the finmolar but nearly straight and almost parallel with that of the opposite side (fi°*. 13, B, p. 260). The incisive foramina are prolonged forwards into deep grooves on the palatal surfaces of the praemaxilhe. The Fig. 12. Lateral view ol the skull of Otocyon lalandii: f nat. size. incisor teeth have different proportions from those of ordinary Canidae, the outer being relatively smaller and less different from the rest. The outer upper incisor, on each side, is separated by an interval from the second. The great difference between Otocyon and all the other Ramose, however, lies not merely in the increased number of the molar teeth, but in the proportions of the teeth to the basicranial axis and to one another, and in the low development of the jaws. The following table gives the average of three of the skulls :- TABLE IX.-Proportional Measurements of the Skull and Teeth in Otocyon. Basicranial axis 100 (average absolute length 42 m m . ). Length of p-^ 12.7 Tzl 13*4 Til 11-8 |