Fig. 212.—Toothed Birds (Odontornithes) of the Cretaceous Rocks of America. a. Left lower jaw of Ichthyornis dispar, slightly enlarged; b, Left lower jaw of Hesperornis regalis, reduced to nearly one-fourth of the natural size; c. Cervical vertebra of Ichthyornis dispar, front view, twice the natural size; c', Side view of the same; d, Tooth of Hesperornis regalis, enlarged to twice the natural size. (After Marsh.) sunk in distinct sockets, they are simply implanted in a deep continuous groove in the bony substance of the jaw. The front of the upper jaw does not carry teeth, and was probably encased in a horny beak. The breast-bone is entirely destitute of a central ridge or keel, and the wings are minute and quite rudimentary; so that Hesperornis, unlike Ichthyornis, must have been wholly deprived of the power of flight, in this respect approaching the existing Penguins. The tail consists of about twelve vertebræ, of which the last three or four are amalgamated to form a flat terminal mass, there being at the same time clear indications that the tail was capable of up and down movement in a vertical plane, this probably fitting it to serve as a swimming-paddle or rudder. The legs were powerfully constructed, and the feet were adapted to assist the bird in rapid motion through the water. The known remains of Hesperornis regalis prove it to have been a swimming and diving bird, of larger dimensions than any of the aquatic members of the class of Birds with which we are acquainted at the present day. It appears to have stood between five and six feet high, and its inability to fly is fully compensated for by the numerous adaptations of its structure to a watery life. Its teeth prove it to have been carnivorous in its habits, and it probably lived upon fishes. It is a curious fact that two Birds agreeing with one another in the wholly abnormal character of possessing teeth, and in other respects so entirely different, should, like Ichthyornis and Hesperornis, have lived not only in the same geological period, but also in the same geographical area; and it is equally curious that the area inhabited by these toothed Birds should at the same time have been tenanted by winged and bird-like Reptiles belonging to the toothed genus Pterodactylus and the toothless genus Pteranodon.
No remains of Mammals, finally, have as yet been detected in any sedimentary accumulations of Cretaceous age.
LITERATURE.
The following list comprises some of the more important works and memoirs which may be consulted with reference to the Cretaceous strata and their fossil contents:—
CHAPTER XVIII.
THE EOCENE PERIOD.
Before commencing the study of the subdivisions of the Kainozoic series, there are some general considerations to be noted. In the first place, there is in the Old World a complete and entire physical break between the rocks of the Mesozoic and Kainozoic periods. In no instance in Europe are Tertiary strata to be found resting conformably upon any Secondary rock. The Chalk has invariably suffered much erosion and denudation before the lowest Tertiary strata were deposited upon it. This is shown by the fact that the actually eroded surface of the Chalk can often be seen; or, failing this, that we can point to the presence of the chalk-flints in the Tertiary strata. This last, of course, affords unquestionable proof that the Chalk must have been subjected to enormous denudation prior to the formation of the Tertiary beds, all the chalk itself having been removed, and nothing left but the flints, while these are all rolled and rounded. In the continent of North America, on the other hand, the lowest Tertiary strata have been shown to graduate downwards conformably with the highest Cretaceous beds, it being a matter of difficulty to draw a precise line of demarcation between the two formations.
In the second place, there is a marked break in the life of the Mesozoic and Kainozoic periods. With the exception of a few Foraminifera, and one Brachiopod (the latter doubtful), no Cretaceous species is known to have survived the Cretaceous period; while several characteristic families, such as the Ammonitidœ, Belemnitidœ, and Hippuritidœ, died out entirely with the close of the Cretaceous rocks. In the Tertiary rocks, on the other hand, not only are all the animals and plants more or less like existing types, but we meet with a constantly-increasing number of living species as we pass from the bottom of the Kainozoic series to the top. Upon this last fact is founded the modern classification of the Kainozoic rocks, propounded by Sil Charles Lyell.