Publisher's Synopsis
Excerpt from The Structure and Life of Birds
The aim of this book is an ambitious one. It attempts to give good evidence of the development of birds from reptilian ancestors, to show what modifications in their anatomy have accompanied their advance to a more vigorous life, and, after ex plaining, as far as possible, their physiology, to make clear the main principles of their noble accomplish ment, ?ight, the visible proof and expression of their high vitality. After this it deals, principally, with the subjects of colour and song, instinct and reason, migration, and the principles of classification, and, lastly, gives some hints as to the best methods of studying birds. The field is a wide one. But this is not in every way a drawback. Specialisation has its evils as well as its advantages. Many of our best ornithologists write admirably of the life and habits of birds, but leave out of sight their anatomy and physiology. Thus they separate things which in nature are mutually dependent. The anatomists and physiologists, on their side, limit themselves sternly to their own departments. Their works.
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