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Show 1896.1 ON THE PTERTLOSIS OF T H E BARBETS AND TOUCANS. 555 fore had the skeleton of a male specimen prepared, and noted following points :- The skull is devoid of ridges, such as are present on the snout in M. vulgaris and palmata, and the ethmoidal fontanelle is large ; the fronto-squamosal arch is bony and slender; the pterygoids considerably fail to reach the maxillaries. The ilium is suspended from the fifteenth vertebra, as in M. vulgaris and palmata, and the caudal vertebra? number 32. EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES. PLATE XXI. Fig. 1. Bana camerani (p. 550). Upper view. ° In. n „ Side view of head. 2. Pelodytes caucasicus (p. 551). Upper and lower view. 2 a. „ ,, Open mouth. PLATE XXII. Fig. 1. Salamandra caucasica (p. 553). Upper view. = la. „ „ Skull, upper and lower view, X2. \b. „ „ Side view of base of tail of 8> x^. 2. Molge vittata (p. 554). Side view. 2 a. „ „ Skull, upper and lower view, X 2. 2. Contributions to the Anatomy of Picarian Birds.- Part II.l A Note upon the Pterylosis of the Barbets and Toucans. By F R A N K E. B E D D A R D , M.A., F.R.S., Prosector to the Society. [Received May 4, 1896.] In a short article mainly referring to the peculiar " intestiui-form" gall-bladder of the Toucans and Barbets, the late Mr. Forbes took occasion to point out other resemblances between these families of birds2 to each other and to the Woodpeckers. With regard to the pterylosis, however, Mr. Forbes contented himself with remarking that " Nitzsch, from pterylographical grounds.... long ago pointed out this connection." Nitzsch undoubtedly placed in one group Picinae, the Barbets, Toucans, and Wood-: peckers; but he included with the former in almost inextricable confusion the Bucconida?, and furthermore observed that " this group also has no general pterylographic character, at least none belonging to itself alone." His plate fully bears out this statement to my mind. Nevertheless it seems to me that there are pterylographic likenesses between the Barbets and the Toucans: I find, in fact, that the pterylosis of such Barbets as I have had the opportunity of examining do not agree altogether with Nitzsch's figures. The species that I have studied are Megalcema asiatica, M. hodgsoni, M. javensis, Cyanops franllini, and Xantholcema 1 See P. Z. S. 1889, p. 587, for Part I. 2 " Note on the Gall-bladder &c. of the Toucans and Barbets," P. Z. S. 1882, p. 94. 36* |
