第15章
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  Thevoicediffersslightly,asIaminformedbyMr。Dixon,inalmosteverybreed。TheMalays(7/66。Fergusonon’PrizePoultry’page87。)havealoud,deep,somewhatprolongedcrow,butwithconsiderableindividualdifference。

  ColonelSykesremarksthatthedomesticKulmcockinIndiahasnottheshrillclearpipeoftheEnglishbird,and\"hisscaleofnotesappearsmorelimited。\"Dr。Hookerwasstruckwiththe\"prolongedhowlingscreech\"ofthecocksinSikhim。(7/67。Col。Sykesin’Proc。Zoolog。Soc。’1832page151。

  Dr。Hooker’s’HimalayanJournals’volume1page314。)ThecrowoftheCochinisnotoriouslyandludicrouslydifferentfromthatofthecommoncock。Thedispositionofthedifferentbreedsiswidelydifferent,varyingfromthesavageanddefianttemperoftheGame—cocktotheextremelypeaceabletemperoftheCochins。Thelatter,ithasbeenasserted,\"grazetoamuchgreaterextentthananyothervarieties。\"TheSpanishfowlssuffermorefromfrostthanotherbreeds。]

  Beforewepassontotheskeleton,thedegreeofdistinctnessoftheseveralbreedsfromG。bankivaoughttobenoticed。SomewritersspeakoftheSpanishasoneofthemostdistinctbreeds,andsoitisingeneralaspect;butitscharacteristicdifferencesarenotimportant。TheMalayappearstomemoredistinct,fromitstallstature,smalldroopingtailwithmorethanfourteentail—feathers,andfromitssmallcombandwattles;

  nevertheless,oneMalaysub—breediscolouredalmostexactlylikeG。

  bankiva。SomeauthorsconsiderthePolishfowlasverydistinct;butthisisasemi—monstrousbreed,asshownbytheprotuberantandirregularlyperforatedskull。TheCochin,fromitsdeeplyfurrowedfrontalbones,peculiarlyshapedoccipitalforamen,shortwing—feathers,shorttailcontainingmorethanfourteenfeathers,broadnailtothemiddletoe,fluffyplumage,roughanddark—colouredeggs,andespeciallyfromitspeculiarvoice,isprobablythemostdistinctofallthebreeds。Ifanyoneofourbreedshasdescendedfromsomeunknownspecies,distinctfromG。

  bankiva,itisprobablytheCochin;butthebalanceofevidencedoesnotfavourthisview。AllthecharacteristicdifferencesoftheCochinbreedaremoreorlessvariable,andmaybedetectedinagreaterorlesserdegreeinotherbreeds。Onesub—breediscolouredcloselylikeG。bankiva。

  Thefeatheredlegs,oftenfurnishedwithanadditionaltoe,thewingsincapableofflight,theextremelyquietdisposition,indicatealongcourseofdomestication;andthesefowlscomefromChina,whereweknowthatplantsandanimalshavebeentendedfromaremoteperiodwithextraordinarycare,andwhereconsequentlywemightexpecttofindprofoundlymodifieddomesticraces。

  OSTEOLOGICALDIFFERENCES。

  Ihaveexaminedtwenty—sevenskeletonsandfifty—threeskullsofvariousbreeds,includingthreeofG。bankiva:nearlyhalfoftheseskullsIowetothekindnessofMr。Tegetmeier,andthreeoftheskeletonstoMr。Eyton。

  SKULL。

  (FIGURE33。OCCIPITALFORAMEN,ofnaturalsize。A。WildGallusbankiva。B。

  CochinCock。

  FIGURE34。SKULLSofnaturalsize,viewedfromabove,alittleobliquely。

  A。WildGallusbankiva。B。White—crestedPolishCock。

  FIGURE35。LONGITUDINALSECTIONSOFSKULL,ofnaturalsize,viewedlaterally;A。PolishCock。B。CochinCock,selectedforcomparisonwiththeabovefrombeingofnearlythesamesize。

  FIGURE36。SKULLOFHORNEDFOWL,ofnaturalsize,viewedfromabove,alittleobliquely。(InthepossessionofTegetmeier。))

  [TheSKULLdiffersgreatlyinsizeindifferentbreeds,beingnearlytwiceaslonginthelargestCochins,butnotnearlytwiceasbroad,asinBantams。Thebonesatthebase,fromtheoccipitalforamentotheanteriorend(includingthequadratesandpterygoids),areabsolutelyidenticalinSHAPEinalltheskulls。Soisthelowerjaw。Intheforeheadslightdifferencesareoftenperceptiblebetweenthemalesandfemales,evidentlycausedbythepresenceofthecomb。IneverycaseItaketheskullofG。

  bankivaasthestandardofcomparison。InfourGames,inoneMalayhen,inanAfricancock,inaFrizzledcockfromMadras,intwoblack—bonedSilkhens,nodifferencesworthnoticeoccur。InthreeSPANISHcocks,theformoftheforeheadbetweentheorbitsdiffersconsiderably;inoneitisconsiderablydepressed,whilstinthetwoothersitisratherprominent,withadeepmedialfurrow;theskullofthehenissmooth。InthreeskullsofSEBRIGHTBANTAMSthecrownismoreglobular,andslopesmoreabruptlytotheocciput,thaninG。bankiva。InaBantamorJumperfromBurmahthesesamecharactersaremorestronglypronounced,andthesupra—occiputismorepointed。InablackBantamtheskullisnotsoglobular,andtheoccipitalforamenisverylarge,andhasnearlythesamesub—triangularoutlinepresentlytobedescribedinCochins;andinthisskullthetwoascendingbranchesofthepremaxillaryareoverlappedinasingularmannerbytheprocessesofthenasalbone,but,asIhaveseenonlyonespecimen,someofthesedifferencesmaybeindividual。OfCochinsandBrahmas(thelatteracrossedraceapproachingcloselytoCochins)Ihaveexaminedsevenskulls;

  atthepointwheretheascendingbranchesofthepremaxillaryrestonthefrontalbonethesurfaceismuchdepressed,andfromthisdepressionadeepmedialfurrowextendsbackwardstoavariabledistance;theedgesofthisfissureareratherprominent,asisthetopoftheskullbehindandovertheorbits。Thesecharactersarelessdevelopedinthehens。Thepterygoids,andtheprocessesofthelowerjaw,arebroader,relativelytothesizeofthehead,thaninG。bankiva;andthisislikewisethecasewithDorkingswhenoflargesize。TheforkofthehyoidboneinCochinsistwiceaswideasinG。bankiva,whereasthelengthoftheotherhyoidbonesisonlyasthreetotwo。Butthemostremarkablecharacteristheshapeoftheoccipitalforamen:inG。bankiva(A)thebreadthinahorizontallineexceedstheheightinaverticalline,andtheoutlineisnearlycircular;

  whereasinCochins(B)theoutlineissub—triangular,andtheverticallineexceedsthehorizontallineinlength。ThissameformlikewiseoccursintheblackBantamabovereferredto,andanapproachtoitmaybeseeninsomeDorkings,andinaslightdegreeincertainotherbreeds。

  OfDorkingsIhaveexaminedthreeskulls,onebelongingtothewhite—sub—

  breed;theonecharacterdeservingnoticeisthebreadthofthefrontalbones,whicharemoderatelyfurrowedinthemiddle;thusinaskullwhichwaslessthanonceandahalfthelengthofthatofG。bankiva,thebreadthbetweentheorbitswasexactlydouble。OfHamburghsIhaveexaminedfourskulls(maleandfemale)ofthepencilledsub—breed,andone(male)ofthespangledsub—breed;thenasalbonesstandremarkablywideapart,butinavariabledegree;consequentlynarrowmembrane—coveredspacesareleftbetweenthetipsofthetwoascendingbranchesofthepre—maxillarybones,whicharerathershort,andbetweenthesebranchesandthenasalbones。Thesurfaceofthefrontalbone,onwhichthebranchesofthepremaxillaryrest,isverylittledepressed。Thesepeculiaritiesnodoubtstandincloserelationwiththebroad,flattenedrose—combcharacteristicoftheHamburghbreed。

  IhaveexaminedfourteenskullsofPOLISHANDOTHERCRESTEDBREEDS。Theirdifferencesareextraordinary。Firstfornineskullsofdifferentsub—

  breedsofEnglishPolishfowls。Thehemisphericalprotuberanceofthefrontalbones(7/68。SeeMr。Tegetmeier’saccountwithwoodcutsoftheskullofPolishfowlsin’Proc。Zoolog。Soc。’November25,1856。ForotherreferencesseeIsid。GeoffroySaint—Hilaire’Hist。Gen。desAnomalies’tome1page287。M。C。Darestesuspects(’RecherchessurlesConditionsdelaVie’etc。Lille1863page36)thattheprotuberanceisnotformedbythefrontalbones,butbytheossificationoftheduramater。)maybeseeninfigure34,inwhich(B)theskullofawhite—crestedPolishfowlisshownobliquelyfromabove,withtheskull(A)of(G。bankivainthesameposition。Infigure35longitudinalsectionsaregivenoftheskullofaPolishfowl,and,forcomparison,ofaCochinofthesamesize。TheprotuberanceinallPolishfowlsoccupiesthesamepositionbutdiffersmuchinsize。Inoneofmyninespecimensitwasextremelyslight。Thedegreetowhichtheprotuberanceisossifiedvariesgreatly,largerorsmallerportionsofbonebeingreplacedbymembrane。Inonespecimentherewasonlyasingleopenpore;generally,therearemanyvariouslyshapedopenspaces,theboneforminganirregularreticulation。Amedial,longitudinal,archedribbonofboneisgenerallyretained,butinonespecimentherewasnobonewhateveroverthewholeprotuberance,andtheskull,whencleanedandviewedfromabove,presentedtheappearanceofanopenbasin。Thechangeinthewholeinternalformoftheskullissurprisinglygreat。Thebrainismodifiedinacorrespondingmanner,asisshowninthetwolongitudinalsections,whichdeserveattentiveconsideration。Theupperandanteriorcavityofthethreeintowhichtheskullmaybedivided,istheonewhichissogreatlymodified;itisevidentlymuchlargerthanintheCochinskullofthesamesize,andextendsmuchfurtherbeyondtheinterorbitalseptum,butlaterallyislessdeep。Thiscavity,asIhearfromMr。Tegetmeier,isentirelyfilledwithbrain。IntheskulloftheCochinandofallordinaryfowlsastronginternalridgeofboneseparatestheanteriorfromthecentralcavity;butthisridgeisquiteabsentinthePolishskullherefigured。TheshapeofthecentralcavityiscircularinthePolish,andlengthenedintheCochinskull。Theshapeoftheposteriorcavity,togetherwiththeposition,size,andnumberoftheporesforthenerves,differmuchinthesetwoskulls。A

  pitdeeplypenetratingtheoccipitalboneoftheCochinisentirelyabsentinthisPolishskull,whilstinanotherspecimenitwaswelldeveloped。Inthissecondspecimenthewholeinternalsurfaceoftheposteriorcavitylikewisedifferstoacertainextentinshape。Imadesectionsoftwootherskulls,——namely,ofaPolishfowlwiththeprotuberancesingularlylittledeveloped,andofaSultaninwhichitwasalittlemoredeveloped;andwhenthesetwoskullswereplacedbetweenthetwoabovefigured(figure35),aperfectgradationintheconfigurationofeachpartoftheinternalsurfacecouldbetraced。InthePolishskull,withasmallprotuberance,theridgebetweentheanteriorandmiddlecavitieswaspresent,butlow;

  andintheSultanthisridgewasreplacedbyanarrowfurrowstandingonabroadraisedeminence。

  ItmaynaturallybeaskedwhethertheseremarkablemodificationsintheformofthebrainaffecttheintellectofPolishfowls;somewritershavestatedthattheyareextremelystupid,butBechsteinandMr。Tegetmeierhaveshownthatthisisbynomeansgenerallythecase。NeverthelessBechstein(7/69。’NaturgeschichteDeutschlands’b。31793s。400。)statesthathehadaPolishhenwhich\"wascrazy,andanxiouslywanderedaboutalldaylong。\"Aheninmypossessionwassolitaryinherhabits,andwasoftensoabsorbedinreveriethatshecouldbetouched;shewasalsodeficientinthemostsingularmannerinthefacultyoffindingherway,sothat,ifshestrayedahundredyardsfromherfeeding—place,shewascompletelylost,andwouldthenobstinatelytrytoproceedinawrongdirection。IhavereceivedotherandsimilaraccountsofPolishfowlsappearingstupidorhalf—idiotic。(7/70。The’Field’May11,1861。IhavereceivedcommunicationstoasimilareffectfromMessrs。BrentandTegetmeier。)

  ToreturntotheskullofPolishfowls。Theposteriorpart,viewedexternally,differslittlefromthatofG。bankiva。Inmostfowlstheposterior—lateralprocessofthefrontalboneandtheprocessofthesquamosalboneruntogetherandareossifiedneartheirextremities:thisunionofthetwobones,however,isnotconstantinanybreed;andinelevenoutoffourteenskullsofcrestedbreeds,theseprocesseswerequitedistinct。Theseprocesses,whennotunited,insteadofbeinginclinedanteriorly,asinallcommonbreeds,descendatrightanglestothelowerjaw;andinthiscasethelongeraxisofthebonycavityoftheearislikewisemoreperpendicular,thaninotherbreeds。Whenthesquamosalprocessisfreeinsteadofexpandingatthetip,itisreducedtoanextremelyfineandpointedstyle,ofvariablelength。Thepterygoidandquadratebonespresentnodifferences。Thepalatinebonesarealittlemorecurvedupwardsattheirposteriorends。Thefrontalbones,anteriorlytotheprotuberance,are,asinDorkings,verybroad,butinavariabledegree。Thenasalboneseitherstandfarapart,asinHamburghs,oralmosttoucheachother,andinoneinstancewereossifiedtogether。Eachnasalboneproperlysendsoutinfronttwolongprocessesofequallengths,formingafork;butinallthePolishskulls,exceptone,theinnerprocesswasconsiderably,butinavariabledegree,shortenedandsomewhatupturned。Inalltheskulls,exceptone,thetwoascendingbranchesofthepremaxillary,insteadofrunningupbetweentheprocessesofthenasalbonesandrestingontheethmoidbone,aremuchshortenedandterminateinablunt,somewhatupturnedpoint。Inthoseskullsinwhichthenasalbonesapproachquiteclosetoeachotherorareossifiedtogether,itwouldbeimpossiblefortheascendingbranchesofthepremaxillarytoreachtheethmoidandfrontalbones;henceweseethateventherelativeconnectionoftheboneshasbeenchanged。Apparentlyinconsequenceofthebranchesofthepremaxillaryandoftheinnerprocessesofthenasalbonesbeingsomewhatupturned,theexternalorificesofthenostrilsareupraisedandassumeacrescenticoutline。

  ImuststillsayafewwordsonsomeoftheforeignCrestedbreeds。Theskullofacrested,rumpless,whiteTurkishfowlwasveryslightlyprotuberant,andbutlittleperforated;theascendingbranchesofthepremaxillarywerewelldeveloped。InanotherTurkishbreed,calledGhoondooks,theskullwasconsiderablyprotuberantandperforated;theascendingbranchesofthepremaxillaryweresomuchabortedthattheyprojectedonly1/15thofaninch;andtheinnerprocessesofthenasalboneweresocompletelyaborted,thatthesurfacewheretheyshouldhaveprojectedwasquitesmooth。Herethenweseethesetwobonesmodifiedtoanextremedegree。OfSultans(anotherTurkishbreed)Iexaminedtwoskulls;

  inthatofthefemaletheprotuberancewasmuchlargerthaninthemale。Inbothskullstheascendingbranchesofthepremaxillarywereveryshort,andinboththenasalportionoftheinnerprocessesofthenasalboneswereossifiedtogether。TheseSultanskullsdifferedfromthoseofEnglishPolishfowlsinthefrontalbones,anteriorlytotheprotuberance,notbeingbroad。

  ThelastskullwhichIneeddescribeisauniqueone,lenttomebyMr。

  Tegetmeier:itresemblesaPolishskullinmostofitscharacters,buthasnotthegreatfrontalprotuberance;ithas,however,tworoundedknobsofadifferentnature,whichstandmoreinfront,abovethelachrymalbones。

  Thesecuriousknobs,intowhichthebraindoesnotenter,areseparatedfromeachotherbyadeepmedialfurrow;andthisisperforatedbyafewminutepores。Thenasalbonesstandratherwideapart,withtheirinnerprocesses,andtheascendingbranchesofthepremaxillary,upturnedandshortened。Thetwoknobsnodoubtsupportedthetwogreathorn—likeprojectionsofthecomb。

  FromtheforegoingfactsweseeinhowastonishingamannersomeofthebonesoftheskullvaryinCrestedfowls。Theprotuberancemaycertainlybecalledinonesenseamonstrosity,asbeingwhollyunlikeanythingobservedinnature:butasinordinarycasesitisnotinjurioustothebird,andasitisstrictlyinherited,itcanhardlyinanothersensebecalledamonstrosity。Aseriesmaybeformedcommencingwiththeblack—bonedSilkfowl,whichhasaverysmallcrestwiththeskullbeneathpenetratedonlybyafewminuteorifices,butwithnootherchangeinitsstructure;andfromthisfirststagewemayproceedtofowlswithamoderatelylargecrest,whichrests,accordingtoBechstein,onafleshymass,butwithoutanyprotuberanceintheskull。ImayaddthatIhaveseenasimilarfleshyorfibrousmassbeneaththetuftoffeathersontheheadoftheTuftedduck;andinthiscasetherewasnoactualprotuberanceintheskull,butithadbecomealittlemoreglobular。Lastly,whenwecometofowlswithalargelydevelopedcrest,theskullbecomeslargelyprotuberantandisperforatedbyamultitudeofirregularopenspaces。Thecloserelationbetweenthecrestandthesizeofthebonyprotuberanceisshowninanotherway;forMr。Tegetmeierinformsmethatifchickenslatelyhatchedbeselectedwithalargebonyprotuberance,whenadulttheywillhavealargecrest。TherecanbenodoubtthatinformertimesthebreederofPolishfowlsattendedsolelytothecrest,andnottotheskull;nevertheless,byincreasingthecrest,inwhichhehasbeenwonderfullysuccessful,hehasunintentionallymadetheskullprotuberanttoanastonishingdegree;andthroughcorrelationofgrowth,hehasatthesametimeaffectedtheformandrelativeconnexionofthepremaxillaryandnasalbones,theshapeoftheorificeofthenose,thebreadthofthefrontalbones,theshapeofthepost—lateralprocessesofthefrontalandsquamosalbones,thedirectionoftheaxisofthebonycavityoftheear,andlastlytheinternalconfigurationofthewholeskulltogetherwiththeshapeofthebrain。

  VERTEBRAE。

  (FIGURE37。SIXTHCERVICALVERTEBRA,naturalsize,viewedlaterally。A。

  WildGallusbankiva。B。Cochincock。)

  InG。bankivatherearefourteencervical,sevendorsalwithribs,apparentlyfifteenlumbarandsacral,andsixcaudalvertebrae(7/71。ItappearsthatIhavenotcorrectlydesignatedtheseveralgroupsofvertebrae,foragreatauthority,Mr。W。K。Parker(’Transact。Zoolog。Soc。’

  volume5page198)specifies16cervical,4dorsal,15lumbar,and6caudalvertebraeinthisgenus。ButIhaveusedthesametermsinallthefollowingdescriptions。);butthelumbarandsacralaresomuchanchylosedthatIamnotsureoftheirnumber,andthismakesthecomparisonofthetotalnumberofvertebraeintheseveralbreedsdifficult。Ihavespokenofsixcaudalvertebrae,becausethebasaloneisalmostcompletelyanchylosedwiththepelvis;butifweconsiderthenumberasseven,thecaudalvertebraeagreeinalltheskeletons。Thecervicalvertebraeare,asjuststated,inappearancefourteen;butoutoftwenty—threeskeletonsinafitstateforexamination,infiveofthem,namely,intwoGames,intwopencilledHamburghs,andinaPolish,thefourteenthvertebraboreribs,which,thoughsmall,wereperfectlydevelopedwithadoublearticulation。

  Thepresenceoftheselittleribscannotbeconsideredasafactofmuchimportance,forallthecervicalvertebraebearrepresentativesofribs;

  buttheirdevelopmentinthefourteenthvertebrareducesthesizeofthepassagesinthetransverseprocesses,andmakesthisvertebraexactlylikethefirstdorsalvertebra。Theadditionoftheselittleribsdoesnotaffectthefourteenthcervicalalone,forproperlytheribsofthefirsttruedorsalvertebraaredestituteofprocesses;butinsomeoftheskeletonsinwhichthefourteenthcervicalborelittleribsthefirstpairoftrueribshadwell—developedprocesses。Whenweknowthatthesparrowhasonlynine,andtheswantwenty—threecervicalvertebrae(7/72。

  Macgillivray’BritishBirds’volume1page25。),weneedfeelnosurpriseatthenumberofthecervicalvertebraeinthefowlbeing,asitappears,variable。

  Therearesevendorsalvertebraebearingribs;thefirstdorsalisneveranchylosedwiththesucceedingfour,whicharegenerallyanchylosedtogether。InoneSultanfowl,however,thetwofirstdorsalvertebraewerefree。Intwoskeletons,thefifthdorsalwasfree;generallythesixthisfree(asinG。bankiva),butsometimesonlyatitsposteriorend,whereincontactwiththeseventh。Theseventhdorsalvertebra,ineverycaseexceptinginoneSpanishcock,wasanchylosedwiththelumbarvertebrae。Sothatthedegreetowhichthesemiddledorsalvertebraeareanchylosedisvariable。

  Sevenisthenormalnumberoftrueribs,butintwoskeletonsoftheSultanfowl(inwhichthefourteenthcervicalvertebrawasnotfurnishedwithlittleribs)therewereeightpairs;theeighthpairseemedtobedevelopedonavertebracorrespondingwiththefirstlumbarinG。bankiva;thesternalportionofboththeseventhandeighthribsdidnotreachthesternum。Infourskeletonsinwhichribsweredevelopedonthefourteenthcervicalvertebra,therewere,whenthesecervicalribsareincluded,eightpairs;butinoneGamecock,inwhichthefourteenthcervicalwasfurnishedwithribs,therewereonlysixpairsoftruedorsalribs;thesixthpairinthiscasedidnothaveprocesses,andthusresembledtheseventhpairinotherskeletons;inthisGamecock,asfarascouldbejudgedfromtheappearanceofthelumbarvertebrae,awholedorsalvertebrawithitsribswasmissing。Wethusseethattheribs(whetherornotthelittlepairattachedtothefourteenthcervicalvertebrabecounted)varyfromsixtoeightpair。Thesixthpairisfrequentlynotfurnishedwithprocesses。ThesternalportionoftheseventhpairisextremelybroadinCochins,andiscompletelyossified。Aspreviouslystated,itisscarcelypossibletocountthelumbo—sacralvertebrae;buttheycertainlydonotcorrespondinshapeornumberintheseveralskeletons。Thecaudalvertebraearecloselysimilarinalltheskeletons,theonlydifferencebeingwhetherornotthebasaloneisanchylosedtothepelvis;theyhardlyvaryeveninlength,notbeingshorterinCochins,withtheirshorttail—feathers,thaninotherbreeds;inaSpanishcock,however,thecaudalvertebraewerealittleelongated。Inthreerumplessfowlsthecaudalvertebraewerefewinnumber,andanchylosedtogetherintoamisformedmass。

  Intheindividualvertebraethedifferencesinstructureareveryslight。

  Intheatlasthecavityfortheoccipitalcondyleiseitherossifiedintoaring,oris,asinBankiva,openonitsuppermargin。TheupperarcofthespinalcanalisalittlemorearchedinCochins,inconformitywiththeshapeoftheoccipitalforamen,thaninG。bankiva。Inseveralskeletonsadifference,butnotofmuchimportance,maybeobserved,whichcommencesatthefourthcervicalvertebra,andisgreatestataboutthesixth,seventh,oreighthvertebra;thisconsistsinthehaemaldescendingprocessesbeingunitedtothebodyofthevertebrabyasortofbuttress。

  ThisstructuremaybeobservedinCochins,Polish,someHamburghs,andprobablyotherbreeds;butisabsent,orbarelydeveloped,inGame,Dorking,Spanish,Bantam,andseveralotherbreedsexaminedbyme。OnthedorsalsurfaceofthesixthcervicalvertebrainCochinsthreeprominentpointsaremorestronglydevelopedthaninthecorrespondingvertebraoftheGamefowlorG。bankiva。

  PELVIS。

  Thisdiffersinsomefewpointsintheseveralskeletons。Theanteriormarginoftheiliumseemsatfirsttovarymuchinoutline,butthisischieflyduetothedegreetowhichthemargininthemiddlepartisossifiedtothecrestofthevertebrae;theoutline,however,doesdifferinbeingmoretruncatedinBantams,andmoreroundedincertainbreeds,asinCochins。Theoutlineoftheischiadicforamendiffersconsiderably,beingnearlycircularinBantams,insteadofegg—shapedasintheBankiva,andmoreregularlyovalinsomeskeletons,asintheSpanish。Theobturatornotchisalsomuchlesselongatedinsomeskeletonsthaninothers。Theendofthepubicbonepresentsthegreatestdifference;beinghardlyenlargedintheBankiva;considerablyandgraduallyenlargedinCochins,andinalesserdegreeinsomeotherbreeds;andabruptlyenlargedinBantams。InoneBantamthisboneextendedverylittlebeyondtheextremityoftheischium。Thewholepelvisinthislatterbirddifferedwidelyinitsproportions,beingfarbroaderproportionallytoitslengththaninBankiva。

  (FIGURE38。EXTREMITYOFTHEFURCULA,ofnaturalsize,viewedlaterally。A。

  WildGallusbankiva。B。SpangledPolishFowl。C。SpanishFowl。D。DorkingFowl。)

  STERNUM。

  Thisboneisgenerallysomuchdeformedthatitisscarcelypossibletocompareitsshapestrictlyintheseveralbreeds。Theformofthetriangularextremityofthelateralprocessesdiffersconsiderably,beingeitheralmostequilateralormuchelongated。Thefrontmarginofthecrestismoreorlessperpendicularandvariesgreatly,asdoesthecurvatureoftheposteriorend,andtheflatnessofthelowersurface。Theoutlineofthemanubrialprocessalsovaries,beingwedge—shapedintheBankiva,androundedintheSpanishbreed。TheFURCULUMdiffersinbeingmoreorlessarched,andgreatly,asmaybeseenintheaccompanyingoutlines,intheshapeoftheterminalplate;buttheshapeofthispartdifferedalittleintwoskeletonsofthewildBankiva。TheCORACOIDpresentsnodifferenceworthnotice。TheSCAPULAvariesinshape,beingofnearlyuniformbreadthinBankiva,muchbroaderinthemiddleinthePolishfowl,andabruptlynarrowedtowardstheapexinthetwoSultanfowls。

  Icarefullycomparedeachseparateboneofthelegandwing,relativelytothesamebonesinthewildBankiva,inthefollowingbreeds,whichI

  thoughtwerethemostlikelytodiffer;namely,inCochin,Dorking,Spanish,Polish,BurmeseBantam,FrizzledIndian,andblack—bonedSilkfowls;anditwastrulysurprisingtoseehowabsolutelyeveryprocess,articulation,andporeagreed,thoughthebonesdifferedgreatlyinsize。

  Theagreementisfarmoreabsolutethaninotherpartsoftheskeleton。Instatingthis,Idonotrefertotherelativethicknessandlengthoftheseveralbones;forthetarsivariedconsiderablyinboththeserespects。

  Buttheotherlimb—bonesvariedlittleeveninrelativelength。]

  Finally,Ihavenotexaminedasufficientnumberofskeletonstosaywhetheranyoftheforegoingdifferences,exceptintheskull,arecharacteristicoftheseveralbreeds。Apparentlysomedifferencesaremorecommonincertainbreedsthaninothers,——asanadditionalribtothefourteenthcervicalvertebrainHamburghsandGames,andthebreadthoftheendofthepubicboneinCochins。BothskeletonsoftheSultanfowlhadeightdorsalvertebrae,andtheendofthescapulainbothwassomewhatattenuated。Intheskull,thedeepmedialfurrowinthefrontalbonesandtheverticallyelongatedoccipitalforamenseemtobecharacteristicofCochins;asisthegreatbreadthofthefrontalbonesinDorkings;theseparationandopenspacesbetweenthetipsoftheascendingbranchesofthepremaxillariesandnasalbones,aswellasthefrontpartoftheskullbeingbutlittledepressed,characteriseHamburghs;theglobularshapeoftheposteriorpartoftheskullseemstobecharacteristicoflacedBantams;andlastly,theprotuberanceoftheskullwiththeascendingbranchesofthepremaxillariespartiallyaborted,togetherwiththeotherdifferencesbeforespecified,areeminentlycharacteristicofPolishandotherCrestedfowls。

  Butthemoststrikingresultofmyexaminationoftheskeletonisthegreatvariabilityofallthebonesexceptthoseoftheextremities。Toacertainextentwecanunderstandwhytheskeletonfluctuatessomuchinstructure;

  fowlshavebeenexposedtounnaturalconditionsoflife,andtheirwholeorganisationhasthusbeenrenderedvariable;butthebreederisquiteindifferentto,andneverintentionallyselects,anymodificationintheskeleton。Externalcharacters,ifnotattendedtobyman,suchasthenumberofthetailandwingfeathersandtheirrelativelengths,whichinwildbirdsaregenerallyconstant,——fluctuateinourdomesticfowlsinthesamemannerastheseveralpartsoftheskeleton。Anadditionaltoeisa\"point\"inDorkings,andhasbecomeafixedcharacter,butisvariableinCochinsandSilkfowls。Thecolouroftheplumageandtheformofthecombareinmostbreeds,orevensub—breeds,eminentlyfixedcharacters;butinDorkingsthesepointshavenotbeenattendedto,andarevariable。Whenanymodificationintheskeletonisrelatedtosomeexternalcharacterwhichmanvalues,ithasbeen,unintentionallyonhispart,actedonbyselection,andhasbecomemoreorlessfixed。Weseethisinthewonderfulprotuberanceoftheskull,whichsupportsthecrestoffeathersinPolishfowls,andwhichbycorrelationhasaffectedotherpartsoftheskull。Weseethesameresultinthetwoprotuberanceswhichsupportthehornsinthehornedfowl,andintheflattenedshapeofthefrontoftheskullinHamburghsconsequentontheirflattenedandbroad\"rose—combs。\"Weknownotintheleastwhetheradditionalribs,orthechangedoutlineoftheoccipitalforamen,orthechangedformofthescapula,oroftheextremityofthefurculum,areinanywaycorrelatedwithotherstructures,orhavearisenfromthechangedconditionsandhabitsoflifetowhichourfowlshavebeensubjected;butthereisnoreasontodoubtthatthesevariousmodificationsintheskeletoncouldberendered,eitherbydirectselection,orbytheselectionofcorrelatedstructures,asconstantandascharacteristicofeachbreed,asarethesizeandshapeofthebody,thecolouroftheplumage,andtheformofthecomb。

  [EFFECTSOFTHEDISUSEOFPARTS。

  JudgingfromthehabitsofourEuropeangallinaceousbirds,Gallusbankivainitsnativehauntswoulduseitslegsandwingsmorethandoourdomesticfowls,whichrarelyflyexcepttotheirroosts。TheSilkandtheFrizzledfowls,fromhavingimperfectwing—feathers,cannotflyatall;andthereisreasontobelievethatboththesebreedsareancient,sothattheirprogenitorsduringmanygenerationscannothaveflown。TheCochins,also,fromtheirshortwingsandheavybodies,canhardlyflyuptoalowperch。

  Thereforeinthesebreeds,especiallyinthetwofirst,aconsiderablediminutioninthewing—bonesmighthavebeenexpected,butthisisnotthecase。Ineveryspecimen,afterdisarticulatingandcleaningthebones,I

  carefullycomparedtherelativelengthofthetwomainbonesofthewingtoeachother,andofthetwomainbonesofthelegtoeachother,withthoseofG。bankiva;anditwassurprisingtosee(exceptinthecaseofthetarsi)howexactlythesamerelativelengthhadbeenretained。Thisfactiscurious,fromshowinghowtrulytheproportionsofanorganmaybeinherited,althoughnotfullyexercisedduringmanygenerations。Ithencomparedinseveralbreedsthelengthofthefemurandtibiawiththehumerusandulna,andlikewisethesesameboneswiththoseofG。bankiva;

  theresultwasthatthewing—bonesinallthebreeds(excepttheBurmeseJumper,whichhasunnaturallyshortlegs,areslightlyshortenedrelativelytotheleg—bones;butthedecreaseissoslightthatitmaybeduetothestandardspecimenofG。bankivahavingaccidentallyhadwingsofslightlygreaterlengththanusual;sothatthemeasurementsarenotworthgiving。

  ButitdeservesnoticethattheSilkandFrizzledfowls,whicharequiteincapableofflight,hadtheirwingsLESSreducedrelativelytotheirlegsthaninalmostanyotherbreed!Wehaveseenwithdomesticatedpigeonsthatthebonesofthewingsaresomewhatreducedinlength,whilsttheprimaryfeathersareratherincreasedinlength,anditisjustpossible,thoughnotprobable,thatintheSilkandFrizzledfowlsanytendencytodecreaseinthelengthofthewing—bonesfromdisusemayhavebeencheckedthroughthelawofcompensation,bythedecreasedgrowthofthewing—feathers,andconsequentincreasedsupplyofnutriment。Thewing—bones,however,inboththesebreeds,arefoundtobeslightlyreducedinlengthwhenjudgedbythestandardofthelengthofthesternumorhead,relativelytothesesamepartsinG。bankiva。

  TheactualweightofthemainbonesofthelegandwingintwelvebreedsisgiveninthetwofirstcolumnsinTable7。I。Thecalculatedweightofthewing—bonesrelativelytotheleg—bones,incomparisonwiththelegandwing—bonesofG。bankiva,aregiveninthethirdcolumn,——theweightofthewing—bonesinG。bankivabeingcalledahundred。(7/73。Itmaybewelltoexplainhowthecalculationhasbeenmadeforthethirdcolumn。InG。

  bankivatheleg—bonesaretothewing—bonesas86:54,oras(neglectingdecimals)100:62;—inCochinsas311:162,oras100:52;——inDorkingsas557:248,oras100:44;andsoonfortheotherbreeds。Wethusgettheseriesof62,52,44fortherelativeweightsofthewing—bonesinG。

  bankiva,Cochins,Dorkings,etc。Andnowtaking100,insteadof62,fortheweightofthewing—bonesinG。bankiva,weget,byanotherruleofthree,83astheweightofthewing—bonesinCochins;70intheDorkings;andsoonfortheremainderofthethirdcolumninthetable。)

  TABLE7。I。(Weightsingrains。)

  COLUMN1。ActualWeightofFemurandTibia。

  COLUMN2。ActualWeightofHumerusandUlna。

  COLUMN3。WeightofWing—bonesrelativelytotheLeg—bonesincomparisonwiththesesamebonesinGallusbankiva。

  1。2。3。

  Gallusbankiva——wildmale8654100

  1。Cochin——male31116283

  2。Dorking——male55724870

  3。Spanish(Minorca)——male38618375

  4。Gold—SpangledPolish——male30614575

  5。Game,black—breasted——male29314377

  6。Malay——female23111680

  7。Sultan——male1899479

  8。IndianFrizzled——male2068867

  9。BurmeseJumper——female5336108

  10。Hamburgh(pencilled)——male157104106

  11。Hamburgh(pencilled)——female11477108

  12。Silk(black—boned)——female8857103

  Intheeightfirstbirds,belongingtodistinctbreeds,inthistable,weseeadecidedreductionintheweightofthebonesofthewing。

  IntheIndianFrizzledfowl,whichcannotfly,thereductioniscarriedtothegreatestextent,namely,tothirty—threepercentoftheirproperproportionalweight。Inthenextfourbirds,includingtheSilkhen,whichisincapableofflight,weseethatthewings,relativelytothelegs,areslightlyincreasedinweight;butitshouldbeobservedthat,ifinthesebirdsthelegshadbecomefromanycausereducedinweight,thiswouldgivethefalseappearanceofthewingshavingincreasedinrelativeweight。NowareductionofthisnaturehascertainlyoccurredwiththeBurmeseJumper,inwhichthelegsareabnormallyshort,andinthetwoHamburghsandSilkfowl,thelegs,thoughnotshort,areformedofremarkablythinandlightbones。Imakethesestatements,notjudgingbymereeyesight,butafterhavingcalculatedtheweightsoftheleg—bonesrelativelytothoseofG。

  bankiva,accordingtotheonlytwostandardsofcomparisonwhichIcoulduse,namely,therelativelengthsoftheheadandsternum;forIdonotknowtheweightofthebodyinG。bankiva,whichwouldhavebeenabetterstandard。Accordingtothesestandards,theleg—bonesinthesefourfowlsareinamarkedmannerfarlighterthaninanyotherbreed。Itmaythereforebeconcludedthatinallcasesinwhichthelegshavenotbeenthroughsomeunknowncausemuchreducedinweight,thewing—boneshavebecomereducedinweightrelativelytotheleg—bones,incomparisonwiththoseofG。bankiva。Andthisreductionofweightmay,Iapprehend,safelybeattributedtodisuse。

  TomakeTable7。I。quitesatisfactory,itoughttohavebeenshownthatintheeightfirstbirdstheleg—boneshavenotactuallyincreasedinweightoutofdueproportionwiththerestofthebody;thisIcannotshow,fromnotknowing,asalreadyremarked,theweightofthewildBankiva。(7/74。

  Mr。Blyth(in’AnnalsandMag。ofNat。Hist。’2ndseriesvolume11848page456)gives31/4poundsastheweightofafull—grownmaleG。bankiva;butfromwhatIhaveseenoftheskinsandskeletonsofvariousbreeds,I

  cannotbelievethatmytwospecimensofG。bankivacouldhaveweighedsomuch。)Iamindeedinclinedtosuspectthattheleg—bonesintheDorking,No。2inthetable,areproportionallytooheavy;butthisbirdwasaverylargeone,weighing7pounds2ounces,thoughverythin。Itsleg—bonesweremorethantentimesasheavyasthoseoftheBurmeseJumper!Itriedtoascertainthelengthbothoftheleg—bonesandwing—bonesrelativelytootherpartsofthebodyandskeleton:butthewholeorganisationinthesebirds,whichhavebeensolongdomesticated,hasbecomesovariable,thatnocertainconclusionscouldbereached。Forinstance,thelegsoftheaboveDorkingcockwerenearlythree—quartersofaninchtooshortrelativelytothelengthofthesternum,andmorethanthree—quartersofaninchtoolongrelativelytothelengthoftheskull,incomparisonwiththesesamepartsinG。bankiva。

  TABLE7。II。

  COLUMN1。LengthofSternum(ininchesanddecimals。)

  COLUMN2。DepthofCrestofSternum(ininchesanddecimals。)。

  COLUMN3。DepthofCrestrelativelytothelengthoftheSternum,incomparisonwithGallusbankiva。

  1。2。3。

  Gallusbankiva——male。4。201。40100

  1。Cochin——male。5。831。5578

  2。Dorking——male。6。951。9784

  3。Spanish——male。6。101。8390

  4。Polish——male。5。071。5087

  5。Game——male。5。551。5581

  6。Malay——female。5。101。5087

  7。Sultan——male。4。471。3690

  8。Frizzledhen——male。4。251。2084

  9。BurmeseJumper——female。3。060。8581

  10。Hamburgh——male。5。081。4081

  11。Hamburgh——female。4。551。2681

  12。Silkfowl——female。4。491。0166

  InTable7。II。inthetwofirstcolumnsweseeininchesanddecimalsthelengthofthesternum,andtheextremedepthofitscresttowhichthepectoralmusclesareattached。Inthethirdcolumnwehavethecalculateddepthofthecrest,relativelytothelengthofthesternum,incomparisonwiththesesamepartsinG。bankiva。(7/75。Thethirdcolumniscalculatedonthesameprincipleasexplainedinfootnote7/73above。)

  Bylookingtothethirdcolumnweseethatineverycasethedepthofthecrestrelativelytothelengthofthesternum,incomparisonwithG。

  bankiva,isdiminished,generallybetween10and20percent。Butthedegreeofreductionvariesmuch,partlyinconsequenceofthefrequentlydeformedstateofthesternum。IntheSilkfowl,whichcannotfly,thecrestis34percentlessdeepthanwhatitoughttohavebeen。Thisreductionofthecrestinallthebreedsprobablyaccountsforthegreatvariability,beforereferredto,inthecurvatureofthefurculum,andintheshapeofitssternalextremity。Medicalmenbelievethattheabnormalformofthespinesocommonlyobservedinwomenofthehigherranksresultsfromtheattachedmusclesnotbeingfullyexercised。Soitiswithourdomesticfowls,fortheyusetheirpectoralmusclesbutlittle,and,outoftwenty—fivesternumsexaminedbyme,threealonewereperfectlysymmetrical,tenweremoderatelycrooked,andtwelveweredeformedtoanextremedegree。Mr。Romanes,however,believesthatthemalformationisduetofowlswhilstyoungrestingtheirsternumsonthesticksonwhichtheyroost。]

  Finally,wemayconcludewithrespecttothevariousbreedsofthefowl,thatthemainbonesofthewinghaveprobablybeenshortenedinaveryslightdegree;thattheyhavecertainlybecomelighterrelativelytotheleg—bonesinallthebreedsinwhichtheselatterbonesarenotunnaturallyshortordelicate;andthatthecrestofthesternum,towhichthepectoralmusclesareattached,hasinvariablybecomelessprominent,thewholesternumbeingalsoextremelyliabletodeformity。Theseresultswemayattributetothelesseneduseofthewings。

  CORRELATIONOFGROWTH。

  IwillheresumupthefewfactswhichIhavecollectedonthisobscure,butimportant,subject。InCochinandGamefowlsthereisperhapssomerelationbetweenthecolouroftheplumageandthedarknessoftheegg—

  shell。InSultanstheadditionalsickle—feathersinthetailareapparentlyrelatedtothegeneralredundancyoftheplumage,asshownbythefeatheredlegs,largecrest,andbeard。IntwotaillessfowlswhichIexaminedtheoil—glandwasaborted。Alargecrestoffeathers,asMr。Tegetmeierhasremarked,seemsalwaysaccompaniedbyagreatdiminutionoralmostentireabsenceofthecomb。Alargebeardissimilarlyaccompaniedbydiminishedorabsentwattles。Theselattercasesapparentlycomeunderthelawofcompensationorbalancementofgrowth。Alargebeardbeneaththelowerjawandalargetop—knotontheskulloftengotogether。Thecombwhenofanypeculiarshape,aswithHorned,Spanish,andHamburghfowls,affectsinacorrespondingmannertheunderlyingskull;andwehaveseenhowwonderfullythisisthecasewithCrestedfowlswhenthecrestislargelydeveloped。

  Withtheprotuberanceofthefrontalbonestheshapeoftheinternalsurfaceoftheskullandofthebrainisgreatlymodified。Thepresenceofacrestinfluencesinsomeunknownwaythedevelopmentoftheascendingbranchesofthepremaxillarybone,andoftheinnerprocessesofthenasalbones;andlikewisetheshapeoftheexternalorificeofthenostrils。

  Thereisaplainandcuriouscorrelationbetweenacrestoffeathersandtheimperfectlyossifiedconditionoftheskull。Notonlydoesthisholdgoodwithnearlyallcrestedfowls,butlikewisewithtuftedducks,andasDr。GuntherinformsmewithtuftedgeeseinGermany。

  Lastly,thefeatherscomposingthecrestinmalePolishfowlsresemblehackles,anddiffergreatlyinshapefromthoseinthecrestofthefemale。

  Theneck,wing—coverts,andloinsinthemalebirdareproperlycoveredwithhackles,anditwouldappearthatfeathersofthisshapehavespreadbycorrelationtotheheadofthemale。Thislittlefactisinteresting;

  because,thoughbothsexesofsomewildgallinaceousbirdshavetheirheadssimilarlyornamented,yetthereisoftenadifferenceinthesizeandshapeoffeathersformingtheircrests。Furthermore,thereisinsomecases,asinthemaleGoldandinthemaleAmherstpheasants(P。pictusandamherstiae),acloserelationincolour,aswellasinstructure,betweentheplumesontheheadandontheloins。Itwouldthereforeappearthatthesamelawhasregulatedthestateofthefeathersontheheadandbody,bothwithspecieslivingundernaturalconditions,andwithbirdswhichhavevariedunderdomestication。

  CHAPTER1。VIII。

  DUCK——GOOSE——PEACOCK——TURKEY——GUINEA—FOWL——CANARY—BIRD——GOLD—FISH——HIVE—

  BEES——SILK—MOTHS。

  DUCKS,SEVERALBREEDSOF。

  PROGRESSOFDOMESTICATION。

  ORIGINOFFROMTHECOMMONWILD—DUCK。

  DIFFERENCESINTHEDIFFERENTBREEDS。

  OSTEOLOGICALDIFFERENCES。

  EFFECTSOFUSEANDDISUSEONTHELIMB—BONES。

  GOOSE,ANCIENTLYDOMESTICATED。

  LITTLEVARIATIONOF。

  SEBASTOPOLBREED。

  PEACOCK,ORIGINOFBLACK—SHOULDEREDBREED。

  TURKEY,BREEDSOF。

  CROSSEDWITHTHEUNITEDSTATESSPECIES。

  EFFECTSOFCLIMATEON。

  GUINEA—FOWL,CANARY—BIRD,GOLD—FISH,HIVE—BEES。

  SILK—MOTHS,SPECIESANDBREEDSOF。

  ANCIENTLYDOMESTICATED。

  CAREINTHEIRSELECTION。

  DIFFERENCESINTHEDIFFERENTRACES。

  INTHEEGG,CATERPILLAR,ANDCOCOONSTATES。

  INHERITANCEOFCHARACTERS。

  IMPERFECTWINGS。

  LOSTINSTINCTS。

  CORRELATEDCHARACTERS。

  Iwill,asinpreviouscases,firstbrieflydescribethechiefdomesticbreedsoftheduck:——

  [BREED1。COMMONDOMESTICDUCK。

  Variesmuchincolourandinproportions,anddiffersininstinctsanddispositionfromthewildduck。Thereareseveralsub—breeds:——

  1。TheAylesbury,ofgreatsize,white,withpale—yellowbeakandlegs;

  abdominaldermalsacklargelydeveloped。

  2。TheRouen,ofgreatsize,colouredlikethewildduck,withgreenormottledbeak;dermalsacklargelydeveloped。

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