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Show 52 MR. F. E. B E D D A R D O N A GIRAFFE. [Feb. 4, event, but it has already occurred on two previous occasions in the Society's Menagerie (cf P. Z. S. 1861, p. 62, pi. xii.). Mr. F. E. Beddard, F.R.S., laid before the Meeting the neck-vertebra? of a young male Giraffe (Camelopardalis girafa) which had died in the Society's Gardens on Jan. 8th, and made the following remarks :- It will be remembered that this animal in life showed a permanent bend in the neck, which was slight and hardly noticeable at the time of its arrival, but increased greatly before the time of its death. After death the neck-vertebra? were carefully cleaned and have revealed the causes of this bend, which undoubtedly pressed upon the spinal cord. There was no tumour of any kind, bony or otherwise, the existence of which might possibly have been presupposed from the external appearance of the neck. The bend in the neck was in fact related to the following condition of the cervical vertebrae. The vertebrae chiefly affected-but, as will be seen presently, not the only ones affected-are the fourth and fifth. These two vertebrae are in the first place firmly ankylosed together so as to be perfectly immovable the one upon the other. The bend occurs in this region, and is produced by these two vertebrae which lie in relation to each other at an angle of nearly 90°. This bend is due to an overgrowth on one side of these vertebrae, the left, and a cessation of growth on the other side. This overgrowth mainly concerns, so far as I can make out, the epiphyses of the vertebrae in question. The general appearance produced is that both vertebrae are shorter in relation to the adjacent vertebrae than the normal. I have observed that the fourth and fifth vertebrae are the two which have been mainly affected. Of these the fourth is more altered than the fifth. The neural spine of the fourth vertebra is curved towards the left in relation to the curvature of the whole vertebra; that is to say, the convex border of the curve is on the left side. In addition to this the spine itself is bent over to the opposite side, i. e. to the right, and forms a cavity deep enough to hide the first finger. Such a bending of the vertebral spine does not occur in the case of the fifth vertebra. ' It is interesting to notice that the adjacent vertebrae have made an attempt, so to speak, to rectify the curvature caused by the injury to the fourth and fifth vertebrae. This state of affairs is naturally seen in the most marked degree in the two vertebrae immediately adjacent to those which have been injured. Particularly is this the case with the third vertebra. This vertebra is bent, but in the opposite direction to the fourth; it is the left side which is concave. The spine too is curved in the same direction, and there is a slight concavity formed in the same way by a bending over of the spine. This, however, lies on the left side and not on the right as is the case with the fourth vertebra. Even the axis vertebra is slightly asymmetrical and a |