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Notes on the Structure of the Palate in the Icterid[Ae]

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Notes on the Structure of the Palate in the Icterid[Ae] 190 wroRr, ThePalate in Icterid,e. [AprilAuk article of 1884,the Sparrow,as a migrant, has becomewell known to ornithologists. Its narrowmigration path, the centerof which in the United Statesis approximatelydown the 96th meridian,has been worked out; the wide extent of territow coveredby strag- glershas beenfully reported;• the food habits of the bird while on migration have been thoroughlyinvestigated and the results published;2 the nesthas beenseen once, s and youngjust out of the nest have been collected,4 and the generalregion of the breeding grounditself is known to be where barren tundra meetsthe edge of the timberbetween Hudson Bay and Great Bear Lake. But the eggsyet remain to be discovered. NOTES ON THE STRUCTURE OF THE PALATE IN THE ICTERID_/E. BY ALEXANDER WETMORE. TttE curiouskeel-like, angular projectionfound on the palate in the North 'AmericanGrackles of the genusQuiscalus, recognized as one of the prominent charactersdistinguishing that group of Blackbirds,is a structurethat can hardly fail to attract attention when the mouth is examinedin freshly killed specimens,or in birds preservedin spirits. Recently, certain observationsmade in the field on these birds, which will be recounted later, recalled this structure to mind and the writer was led to make a somewhat detailed study of the palatal keel in the Grackles,and finally to examinethe appearanceof the palate in other membersof the family Icteridoe. In these studies, carried on in the United States National • The Status of the Harris's Sparrow in Wisconsin and Neighboring States. By Alvin R. Cahn. Bull. Wis. Nat. Hist. Soc., Vol. XIII, No. 2, pp. 102-108. Also in numerous lists and field notespublished in ' The Auk,' ' Wilson Bull.' and the other bird .iournals. 2 The Relation of Sparrows to Agriculture. By Sylvester A. Judd. Bull. Biol. Surv. No. 15, 1901. s Bird Records from Great Slave Lake Region. By E. T. Seton. The Auk, 1908, p. 72. a Biological Investigation of Hudson Bay Region. By E. A. Preble. N.A. Fauna No. 22. Washington, 1901. Vol. 1919X_XXVI] J WETMORE,The Palate in Icte•idce. 191 Museum, there have been availablesuitable specimens represent- ing all of the leading generawith the exceptionof Clypeicterus, Ocyalus,Lampropsar and Macragelceus.In all, one hundredand thirteen speciesbelonging to thirty-one generahave beenexamined. Study of skinsof the genusQuiscalus shows that the palatal keel is developedas a compressedprojection from the roofof the mouth, slightly behind the center of the commissure(Fig. 1). Viewed % Fig. 1. Head of Quiscalusquiscula aeneas. a Palatal keel (about natural size.) from the sideit is truncatedin front, formingan angularprojection that has a tendencyto becometoothed at the tip. Posteriorlyit lowers to mergefinally into the level of the palate. The anterior margin is sharp,and the posteriorportion is thicker and stronger. The entire ridge is developedas a fold in the horny sheathingof the palate, and the surfaceof the premaxillaunderneath is smooth and fiat with no indication ot a bony ridge to supportthe keel. From the examinationof museumskins it appearsthat the palatal ridge beginsto developin juvenile birds a short time beforethey leave the nest, at a stage when the body is well coveredwith feathers,and the incomingtail teathershave attained a length of 20 to 25 millimeters. In such birds the keel appearsas a very slightly raisedridge that forms a distinctline on the palate. The bill at this time has reachedabout three4ourthsof the length attained when the bird is adult, so that the beginningot this ridge appearsto be located far totward, though it occupiesthe same positionin relation to the external nasal openingthat the tully developedkeel doesin the adult. In the dried skinsthe ridge is somewhatindistinct, but it is possiblethat it may be morereadily apparentin livingor recentlykilled specimens. 192 wrT•oar,The Palate in Icteridaz. [April[ Auk In birdsthat arealmost fully feathered and that areabout ready to leavethe nestthe bill has becomestronger, the raisedpalatal line is heavier, and has a roundedanterior end that forms a masked projectionand then continuesto mergewith the palate in front. In olderspecimens, able to fly but with the rectricesonly 95 to 105min. long,the palatalridge was better marked, being broad and strongbasally and moreslender toward the point. In a few of the specimensof this stageexamined the cuttingangle seemed well developed,but in othersit was lessstrongly indicated. In birdsthat werefully grownbut still in juvenalplumage the ridge was wall developedbut not so prominentas in adults. In some the basalportion was broadand rounded,verging toward the formationof palatefound in the genusMegaquiscalus. In others the anteriorcutting angle was more prominent but the entireridge had onlyattained from one-half to three-fourthsof its full height. No oneapparently has raised the questionof thepossible function of thiskeel, developed as describedabove, so that it seemsproper to recordhere certainfield observationsmade by the writer that indicatethe useof this structure. As might be expectedit serves in securingand preparingcertain parts of the food. In December 1917,near Stuttgart in easternArkansas, during a time when the ground was coveredby a light fall of snow, flocks of Bronzed Grackleswere found feedingamong small grovesof a pin oak (Quercusp&godaefolia). The groundunder thesetrees was nearly bare and the birdswere workingabout searchingfor the small acornsthat had fallen and were partly concealedunder leaves and low plant growthbeneath the oaks. The Grackleswere tame and with a pair of binocularsit wasan easymatter to watchthem at closerange. The acornswere pickedup, held in the bill and pressedfirmly againstthe keel on the palate,then released, turned slightlyby meansof mandiblesand tongue, and then again gripped strongly. In this way the acornwas rotated until a line had been impressedentirely around the shell. With a little furthermanipu- lation the shelldropped off in two halvesand the kernelwas swal- lowed entire without further preparation,though frequently it wasgulped down only after someeffort. After watchingone feed- ing flockfor sometime I clappedmy handssharply to startlethem and then examinedthe ground where they had been at work. Vol. 1919XXXVI •l WETMORE,The Palate 'in Icterid•e. 193 Scatteredamong the leaveswere many acornshells, most of which had beencut in two in a line transverseto the longitudinalaxis. Some had fairly smooth,clean-cut margins,while others were toughenedand jagged. In searchingthrough the leavesI picked up oneacorn still intact that had beendropped by oneof the birds, perhapswhen the flockwas frightened up, in whicha line had been impressedentirely aroundthe center. In this the impressionsof the palatal keel were distinctlyvisible. When attentionwas onceattracted to this mannerof feeding otherincidents were noted in whichthe palatalkeel was brought in play. On one occasionon the streetsof WaShingtona Purple Gracklewas observedattempting to split opena kernel of corn droppedfrom somepassing dray. The bird heldthis grainin the slightnotch near the centerof the bill and pressedit againstthe angularkeel. The grainproved refractory, as it snappedout sev- eral times, dropping8 or 10 inchesaway, to be seizedand again compressed.Watching until it had been droppedI frightened the bird andsecured the kernelof corn. On oneside four grooves impressedin the hard outer surfacewere visible showing where, andwith whatforce, the sharpkeel had beenapplied. Apparentlythe palatal ridge developswith the gradualgrowth of the bill, andbecomes fully functionalshortly after the immature bird is left by its parentsto its own resourcesin securingfood. It seemsto be fully grownin all by the middleof September. In many adult specimensthe ridge showssigns of heavy wear from the nearly constantuse to which it is put. In somethe cutting angle was well roundedin front from constantabrasion, while in othersthe anteriormargin had becomeirregular and broken. In one specimenthe thin lower margin of the compressedkeel was entirelyworn away, leavinga low roundedprojection in whichthe two sidesof the fold by which the keel had been formed were clearly visible,with a line of separationbetween them. It was interestingto note that the palatal ridge was usually well worn in old adults,taken in late fall or early spring,belongrig to the northernraces (Quiscalus q. quisculaand Q. q. ozneas)while little or no wear wasapparent in similarspecimens of the southernform (Q. q. agkeus)from South Carolinaand Florida. The data avail- able from the examination of a small number of stomachs of this 194 ThePalate in Icteridc•. œApri[ Auk form from Florida showa preponderanceof insects and fruits with very little mast or grain, a fact of interest, but one that is not fully substantiatedas the material available is small. Among near relatives of Quiscalusquiscula a slightly developed palatal ridge was encounteredin Megaquiscalusmacrourus, where the projectionwas broad and well roundedposteriorly, and narrow in front with the lower margin acute,forming a sharp keel. In somespecimens seen this keel was slowly reduceduntil it merged smoothlywith the palatal surfacein front. In others the anterior margin was obtuselydeclivous. The obtuseanterior cutting angle projectedbelow the marginsof the tomia for nearly a millimeter in a few individuals,and in these occasionalspecimens the resem- blancewas striking to thosebills of Quiscalusin which the ridgewas most poorly developed. Juvenile specimensof Megaquiscalusm.
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