. Cassell's natural history. Animals; Animal behavior. PHYSIOLOGY OF HATJIACHJANS. 347 in the Reptiles, and tliat tliey should i)reseut, iii tins particular, some analogy to the aLdomiual structure of the Mammalia. But it is in the disposition of the muscles of the thigh and leg in the Batrachia that the greatest singularity is manifested. These, whether taken conjointly or singly, present the greatest analogy with the muscular arrangement of the same parts in man. There is a rounded, elongated, conical thigh, the knee extending itself in the same du-ection with the thigh bone, and a well-fash
. Cassell's natural history. Animals; Animal behavior. PHYSIOLOGY OF HATJIACHJANS. 347 in the Reptiles, and tliat tliey should i)reseut, iii tins particular, some analogy to the aLdomiual structure of the Mammalia. But it is in the disposition of the muscles of the thigh and leg in the Batrachia that the greatest singularity is manifested. These, whether taken conjointly or singly, present the greatest analogy with the muscular arrangement of the same parts in man. There is a rounded, elongated, conical thigh, the knee extending itself in the same du-ection with the thigh bone, and a well-fashioned calf to the leg. The locomotion of the Batrachians on the land consists in walking, running, and leaping, the last being the most prevalent motion. The gi-eater jjart of them are excellent swimmers; and when they betake themselves to this exercise the body is extended horizontally, and the animal is propelled by the mechanism of the lower extremities alone. It is impossible to watch the horizontal motions of a Frog in the water, as it is impelled by these muscles and its webbed feet, without being struck with the great resemblance, in this position, of its frame to human conformation, and the almost perfect identity of the movements of its lower extremities with those of a man making the same eftbrts in the same situation. By the aid of^these well-developed lower limbs, and the prodi- gious power of their muscular and bony levers, some Frogs can raise themselves in the aii- to twenty times tlieii- own height, and traverse, at a single bound, a space more than fifty times the length of their own bodies. The tongue performs a leading part in the capture and deglutition of the prey. It is very soft and fleshy, and is not supported at its base by an os hyoides, as in the other Vertebi-ata, but it is fixed in the concavity which is formed by the approach of the two branches of the lower jaw towards the chin. In a state of rejiose, and when the mouth is shut, this tongue, which
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