George E. Hudson

Ontogeny of the Supernumerary Sesamoids in the Leg Muscles of the Ring-Necked Pheasant

IT has long been known to hunters, game managers, gourmets, and, no doubt, to primitive man, that the shank muscles of grouse, certain pheasants and partridges, and turkeys contain numerous splinters of bone. In the fall hunting season these are present in all specimens of grouse, Mountain Quail (Oreortyx pictus), Gray Partridge (Perdix perdix), Ring-necked Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus) and turkey (Meleagris gallopavo), except occasionally in very young birds hatched unusually late. Occurrence of sesamoids in the legs of many genera of gallinaceous birds has been summarized by Hudson, Lanzillotti, and Edwards (Amer. Midl. Nat., 61: 1-677 1959; see pp. 46-47), and for the wing muscles by Hudson and Lanzillotti (Ibid., 71: 1-113, 1964; see pp. 92-93). Similar structures occur in some members of the Gruiformes and Strigiformes (Hudson, ibid., 18: 1-108, 1937). The purposes of this investigation were to determine the age at which each leg sesamoid appears, the extent to which this varies, and whether the development of sesamoids could be used as an additional criterion for estimating the age of individuals.

Some Miscellaneous Notes on South Carolina Birds

DURING June and early July, 1934, G. E. Hudson carried out intensive field work in the vicinity of Clemson College, S. C., in the employment of the Department of Entomology and Zoology. The object of this work was to collect as much data as possible on the breeding birds of the region. Most of the time was spent in the immediate neighborhood of the college but a number of one-day trips were made into various parts of the nearby mountains of Pickens County. Observations recorded here include some made during this period together with other scattered records that have been collected during the past several years by Professors Franklin Sherman and H. A. Rankin of Clemson College, and others. Late in the summer of 1934 seventy-three bird-skins from the collection of the Department of Entomology and Zoology of Clemson College were sent to Dr. Harry C. Oberholser of the U. S. Biological Survey for subspecific determination. These were subsequently identified and returned. We are greatly indebted to Dr. Oberholser for this courtesy. The subspecific names that are based on his identifications are followed in the list by an asterisk placed in parentheses. Our appreciation is further extended to Professor Myron H. Swenk of the University of Nebraska for helpful suggestions.