so as evidently to be endowed with great sensibility, as is likewise the tongue, which is large and fleshy

except at its sides, which are fringed and toothed with horny ridges. When we observe the use that the Duck makes of this organ, we perceive that, unlike other birds, it discriminates its food, not by sight or smell, but by the sense of touch resident in its tongue. It plunges its beak into the mud, and brings up whatever it may happen to meet with, and from this mouthful of stuff it selects, by the aid of that member alone, whatever is good for food; while what is useless escapes through the straining apparatus at the sides of the bill. In comparison with this remarkable structure of the beak, the other characters whereby these birds are distinguishable become of secondary importance, nevertheless they also are somewhat striking. The slightly elongated body is strongly built, the neck either of moderate length, or very long and slender, the high and narrow head of medium size. The tarsus is small or moderate (or, exceptionally, very high), four-toed, and webbed in front. The moderate-sized wings are somewhat pointed; they consist occasionally of but twelve feathers, and are either truncate or rounded, sometimes wedge-shaped or pointed at the extremity. The plumage is always close, smooth, and well packed with down. The distribution of the various races of these birds is more limited than that of many Natatorial families, and some of them at certain seasons migrate regularly from colder to warmer climates, and vice versâ.

The FLAMINGOES (Phœnicopteri), notwithstanding their extraordinary length of leg and neck, which have induced some authors to class them with the Wading Birds, are, both in their general structure and mode of life, most undoubtedly to be regarded as members of the present order, and are, as their internal anatomy teaches, very nearly related to the Swans. Their body is slenderly built, neck very long, head large, and the wings, in which the second quill is the longest, of moderate length; the tail, which consists of twelve feathers, is remarkably short. The peculiarly constructed beak is somewhat longer than the head, higher than broad, but thick and bent down towards the middle, at an obtuse angle. The upper mandible, which is much smaller and feebler than the lower, is remarkably flat; both mandibles are provided at their circumference with the lamellated sieve-like structure characteristic of the Lamellirostres. The whole apparatus very much resembles a box, of which the lower jaw forms the body, while the upper mandible constitutes the lid. This extraordinary bill is covered with soft skin, but is hard at its apex, and towards its base presents a soft cere. The legs, which are most disproportionately long and slender, are denuded of feathers for a considerable distance above the heel; the three front toes are of moderate length, and connected by a broad, slightly-excavated web. The hind toe, which is considerably elevated, is short and feeble. The thick, compact, soft plumage is beautifully coloured, and is exactly comparable to that of other Swimming Birds. The internal structure of the Flamingo has been carefully studied by Wagner, and found to correspond in every particular with that of the Ducks (Anatidæ). Naturalists are at present acquainted with about half a dozen species belonging to this group, and although the history of some of them is far from complete, enough is known to induce us to believe that in their mode of life they differ in no respect from the species with which we are best acquainted. These remarkable birds are widely distributed over the warmer portions of the globe, and are met with principally in Asia, Africa, and South Europe. According to the accounts of both ancient and modern writers, they make their appearance every year in great numbers in the vicinity of the lakes of Sardinia and Sicily, as also in Albufera de Valencia, and other parts of Spain. Along the coasts of Egypt, Tripoli, Tunis, Algiers, and Morocco, they are abundant, as also in Smyrna, and near the banks of the Volga, but are very rarely met with in Greece. Occasionally a few stragglers have been seen as far north as the banks of the Rhine; generally speaking, however, the south coast of Europe must be regarded as their northern limit, and North Africa and Central Asia as their usual habitat. Those species that