The zoology of the voyage of H.M.S. Beagle [vol. 1 of 5] : $b Fossil mammaliaOwen, Richard
Science
The zoology of the voyage of H.M.S. Beagle [vol. 1 of 5] : $b Fossil mammalia
Owen, Richard
Beagle Expedition (1831-1836); Mammals, Fossil; Paleontology -- South America; Zoology
The first molar in the present jaw is the smallest and simplest of the
series: its transverse section is ellipsoid, or subovate, narrowest in
front, and somewhat more convex on the outer than on the inner side: the
long diameter of the ellipse is nine lines, the short or transverse
diameter six lines: the length of the tooth may be about three inches,
but I have not deemed it necessary to fracture the alveolus in order to
ascertain precisely this point.
The second tooth presents in transverse section a more irregular and
wider oval figure than the first: the line of the outer side is convex,
but that of the inner side slightly concave, in consequence of the tooth
being traversed longitudinally by a broad and shallow channel or
impression; the longitudinal diameter of the transverse section is one
inch; the transverse diameter at the widest part nine lines. There is a
slight difference in the size of this tooth on the two sides of the jaw,
the right one, from which the above dimensions are taken, being the
largest.
The transverse section of the third tooth has a trapezoidal or
rhomboidal form; the angles are rounded off; the posterior one is most
produced; the anterior and posterior surfaces are flattened, the latter
slightly concave in the middle; the external and internal sides are
concave in the middle, especially the inner side, where the concavity
approaches to the form of an entering notch. The longest diameter of the
transverse section of this tooth is thirteen lines, the shortest seven
lines and a half: in the tooth on the right side the external surface is
nearly flat; this slight difference is not indicated in the figure (Pl.
XVIII.)
The last molar, which is generally the most characteristic in the fossil
_Bruta_, presents in an exaggerated degree the peculiarities of the
preceding tooth; the longitudinal channels on both the outer and inner
surfaces encroach so far upon the substance of the tooth, that the
central coarse ivory substance is as it were squeezed out of the
interspace, and the elevated ridge of the dense ivory describes an
hour-glass figure upon the triturating surface, the connecting isthmus
being but half the breadth of the rest of the tract; the external
cæmentum preserves nearly an equal thickness throughout. Of the two
lobes into which this tooth is divided by the transverse constriction,
the anterior is the largest; their proportions and oblique position are
pretty accurately given in the figure. The longitudinal diameter of the
transverse section of this tooth is one inch, seven lines, its greatest
lateral or transverse diameter is ten lines, its least diameter at the
constricted part is three lines, the length of the entire tooth is four
inches. Judging from the form of the jaw, the length of the other teeth
decreases in a regular ratio to the anterior one. The posterior tooth is
slightly curved, as shown in fig. 2, Pl. XIX., with the concavity
directed towards the outer side of the jaw.
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