. The bird, its form and function . rve is, never touch your heels to the ground;run wholly on the ball of the foot. Untold centuriesago, wise old Nature whispered the very same directionto those of her children who had most need to run fortheir lives in lifes great race, and down through theages some of them have never broken training. When an animal acquiresgreat speed in runningor leaping, there is atendency for one toeto become greatly en-larged at the expenseof the others, as isseen in the case of thehorse, the kangaroo,and the ostrich. In the horse onlythe middle toe isfunctional, the se
. The bird, its form and function . rve is, never touch your heels to the ground;run wholly on the ball of the foot. Untold centuriesago, wise old Nature whispered the very same directionto those of her children who had most need to run fortheir lives in lifes great race, and down through theages some of them have never broken training. When an animal acquiresgreat speed in runningor leaping, there is atendency for one toeto become greatly en-larged at the expenseof the others, as isseen in the case of thehorse, the kangaroo,and the ostrich. In the horse onlythe middle toe isfunctional, the secondand fourth having de-generated into thesmall splint-bones atthe side of the leg. The kangaroo progresses uponthe fourth and fifth toes, the second and third beingsmall and skin-bound. The ostrich has but two toes,one of which, the third, as in the case of the horse, isvery large and armed with a thick claw, which, hoof-like, grows close to the toe. This toe supports most ofthe birds weight, while the fourth or outer toe is only. Fig. 308.—Feet and legs of Cassowary. Feet and Legs 395
Size: 1428px × 1749px
Photo credit: © Reading Room 2020 / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, bookpublishernewyo, bookyear1906
