. Catalogue of casts of fossils, from the principal museums of Europe and America, with short descriptions and illustrations. Fossils. 48 VERTEBRATAo Sheppey. " Comparisons of the ornitholites of the Eocene Tertiaries (says Owen) show that the following ordinal modifications of this class of Birds were at that period represented: the raptorial, hy species of the size of our ospreys, buzzards and smaller falcons, and most probably also by an owl; the insessorial, by species seemingly allied to the nut- hatch and the lark; the scansorial, by species as large as the cuckoo and king-fisher ;
. Catalogue of casts of fossils, from the principal museums of Europe and America, with short descriptions and illustrations. Fossils. 48 VERTEBRATAo Sheppey. " Comparisons of the ornitholites of the Eocene Tertiaries (says Owen) show that the following ordinal modifications of this class of Birds were at that period represented: the raptorial, hy species of the size of our ospreys, buzzards and smaller falcons, and most probably also by an owl; the insessorial, by species seemingly allied to the nut- hatch and the lark; the scansorial, by species as large as the cuckoo and king-fisher ; the rasorial, by a species of small quail; the cursorial, by a species as large as, but with thicker legs than, an ostrich; the grallatorial, by a curlew of the size of the ibis, and by species allied to Scolopax, Tringa and Pelidna, of the size of our woodcock, lapwings and sanderlings; and the natatorial, by species allied to the cormorant, but one of them of larger size, though less than the pelican; also, by a species akin to the Divers.''" Ornithic remains become more abundant as we approach the present era, especially in the Miocene strata, so richly developed in France. Indications of every Order, except the great Cursores, have been ob- served in that formation,—those of Waders being most numerous. The Pliocene marls at Monte Bolca furnish impressions of feathers, and the Pleistocene clay of England has yielded a fossil humerus re- sembling that of the wild goose. But most of the ornitholites of the recent Tertiary are confined to bone-caverns. They belong to Birds resembling the falcon, wood-pigeon, lark, thrush and teal. The most extraordinary additions to the paleontology of this Class have been obtained from New Zealand—an island remarkable for pos- sessing but one indigenous land-mammal, and but a few diminutive rep- tiles. Colossal Birds, ranging from three to ten feet in height, akin to the Ostrich but tridactyle and tetradactyle, have left remains in th
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1860, booksubjectfossils, bookyear1866
