New-York tribune., 1877-09-01

tllt
Birds existed at this ne although at the proof
| Is waiting.
II viii be seen that although rcptiian life was espe
ally abundant during Jtiassle aud JaraSsie pera
bur few bones have found This is wing part "a
tho character Of most Of ne ROCKS thcH formed which
were we fitted forprcerving such remains. although
! admirably adapted to rets y footprints.
During the Crctaceous Period Repilian life IN America
attained iss greatest development, aud the sediments
laid down In the open and estusrics usually
most favorable for the preservation Of faithful record
| Of iis various phases
ANCIENT sAuRMN MONSTERS.
The Reptiles most cbaras teFisto OF American Gre
tacco1s strata are the group VERY few
repre- sentatives other parts OF the world In Cref
ceous scas. they ruled supreme as ueir numbers aze
and earnyorous habits enabled them 10 easily y1uqalsh
all rivals Some at hast sixty feet In e0gtb and
the smallest twelve In the Inland Cretaceous
| from which the Rocky Mountains were beynnsE 70
EMERGE these ancient ea Serpents" aboundsd; and
many were entonbed IN lie muddy bottom On oeca
sion, rode through valley washed out cf this Old
ocean bed less than seven different slcetons u
these monsters In sight ut once. The Mosasens
essentially swimming Lizards With four well deyehIsd
paddles and they had lstie affinity with modern
! pens, 10 which they have been compared.
The CrOeOdiEa abundant m rocks OF CrcaeeOus
in America and two distinct types represented Tae
Teeiary afine beds of the Atlantic coast contain
parativey few Crocodan remains, and ali are Of modern
types tho grDus 0ar,ds having one Eoeene sies aad
tho Alligator tenx Represented only in the lates DO
pOsils.
II is wotly OF special mention N this connection uat
no true Laeetilia or Lizards, aud ODfdia OF Ser
poHts have yet been detected in American Crcaeeoas
beds; although their remains II present, would hardly
have ESCAPED observation in the regions explored The
former Will dybti6ss be found several speeea occur
in the Mesozoic OF Europe and perhaps the Latter. al
though the Ophdians are apparently more modern
type. In E0cene ake-basins 81 Western Amcrf~.
mains Of Lizards are yeIy numerous, amt inncats
species much larger than any existing to-day
The frat American scrpcnis lar ~ now known ap-
pear in the Eocene. which contains also tle oldest
European species.
The Pierosmuia, or nyng Lizards among the most
interesting Reptiles OF McsozOc me and many of them
cft their remains In the so sediments o. ON inland Gre
taccous sea. THESE were yeTisbe Ora IONS, haynga
spread OF wings % from ten TO twenty-five feet
The strange Reptiles known as DHosanfn, which, as
We have seen were numerous during the depO1.ion II
our r,ssc shales and sandstone have nos YET been
found in American Jurassic but wel Represented
here throughout the Creaceou-, and at IT. close became
extinct These animals possess peculiar Interest :" tie
anatoni. since, although reltii,an IN ni their main
characters, they show clear ailinites with the
Birds and have some features which may roiS
70 Mammals. Tie Coctaceous Dinosaurs vera
all OF large sic, and most Of them walked on tho
hind feet alone, Ike modern stfuthogs birds.
Near the base OF Creiaceous formation, IN
beds which / regard - the equivalent Of
the European Weal,eu the gigantic form
Of tbis order yet discovered hive receplly b,en
brought to HIGHT One Of these monsters iIitf-
nosaaI7,s uDnt1nUS, from Colorado, is BY Tar me
largest land animal yet discovered; IFS dhnen'los
balug greater than supposed possible in an anre2l
that iyod and moved upon the land. II was some any
or sixty feet IN length and when at least tdy
feet IN height 1t doubtless fed upon the ioihge OF tho
mountain forests portions OF which preserved with
lis remains. with nta10sGtrus The bones Of smaller
Dnosaurs,-one Y0,osHgse) not larger than a cai-il
well those Of CrOccdcs and Turtles, are not uneon-
m9n The recent discovery of these interesting remans,
many and various in strata that had long been pro-
noanced by professional explorers barren Of yertehrae
fossils should teach caution 10 tnoso who decline TO ac-
eept the impericctiOB OF our knowledge to-day ~ idr
plea for tie supposed a1se-ce oi intermediate FORMS
In the marine Creacsous beds Of the West, only sin
gle Dnosaur (ifdrOsaus qgiisl, has been feund Dat
in the higher resh-wa.cr beds which mack the close Of
this formation their remains mumerous and indicate
several well marked speces, II not senera.
TIIE BIRDS WITH TEETB.
The first appearance OF Birds in America, according 70
our present knowledge, during the Cretaceous
Period although uany announcements have been mage
OF their ris,enca preceding epOehs The evidence u
their presence the Iia based on footprints and other
impressions, is az present, have seen, without
vame; although may confidently await their dise0y-
cry there If not in older formations 4rcagoDteBr.
from the European Jura, the Oldest bird known, aud now
fortunately represented by more than single 6pecinen
clearly indicates a mneh higher antiquity for the class
The earliest American FORMS at present knowB are tie
Odont,,nihes or Birds with teeth, which have been
exhued within the last few years, from The Cna.k o.
Kansas The two genera HcspeTOr7,is and ichMyaors'
are types OF distinct ORDERS and diuer from each other
and from 4rchG ptyyr much more than DO any exstng
BIRDS among themselves; thus showing that Brs arc
now closed type and that the key % the history Of the
| class must be sought Tor Ia the distant past
I'm HespeyOynis, we have a large aquatic blrd. nearly
six feet in length with strange eomonaticn OF eharae-
ers The jaws arc provided with teeth set in gro0yesi
the wings were rudmentary and useless while the legs
were very similar to those OF modern diving birds ms
last feature was merely adaptation as tho more I'M
portant characters suHthOus, showing That HeSp
oyTis was essentially cariyorous swimming Oi-rel
Ichlhyornis small flying bird, stranger still ss The
teeth were in sockets; and the verlebre beoncaye rs
in Fishes and a few Reptiles. ApatOelis and all other
allied fornis occur In the beds. and probably al
were provided with teeth II Is strange that the com
panions OF these ancient tOohed Birds should have
been Pterodaetys without teeth In the later Cretasous
beds Of the Atlantic Coast various remains OF aquatic
birds have been found but all apparently distinct
from those Of the West
During the Tertiary period Birds were numerous N
this country, and all yet discovered appear 10 nave DC
longed 10 modern types.
It's now generally admitted by biologists who have
made a study OF the vortobratss, that Birds have como
down TO US through tho Dinosaurs aud the close ahnV
Of the latter with recent slrthious Birds viii hardly DO
questioned The caao amounts almost TO demonstra
ton II we compare, with DRosoars, their eontempori
ries the Mesozoic Birds The classes Of Birds ami Rep
tiles as now living separated by gulf profound
that few years since il cited by the opponents oil
evolution as the most important break in the animal
SERIES and which that doctrine could not bridge over
Since then rs Huxley has clearly shown tbs zap hS
been virtually filed by the discovery Of blrdke Reptiles