AI'SENDE'SIA (Lem.), a gentle of Fora Pot ypia ria, from the great Oolito near Bath.
APTEItYX, a genus of Struthione Birds, inhabiting Australia and the islands of New Zealand. It was first described by Dr. Shaw, who regarded it as an extinct form of bird. It evidently believe to a group of birds that were destined to live on the earth, only as long as they were free from the attacks of carnivorous enemies endowed with greater powers of motion than themselves. Numbers of wingless birds, not belonging to the Struthious division, as the Dodo and Solitaire, seem already to have become extinct; whilst the smaller congeners of the Dinornis are suffering in like manner. The Apteryx is not however extinct, as many stuffed specimens exist in the museums of England ; and, at the present moment (June, 1853), there is a living specimen in the gardens of the Zoological Society, Regent's Park. Of all birds at present known the Apteryx appears to have the wings the most reduced to their simplest rudiments. Its general form is that of the Penguin, and in size it is seldom quite so big as our common goose. The beak is very long and slender, marked on each side with a longitudinal groove, and covered with a membrane at its base. It differs from other birds in the completeness of its
diaphragm, and in the absence of abdominal air-cells. The bones are not hollow, as is mostly the case in birds; the sternum is very small, and the ribs are extraordinarily broad ; the feathers have no accessory plume, and their shafts are prolonged beyond the back ; the feet have a short and elevated hind-toe, of which the claw alone is externally visible.
The native name of this bird is Kiwi,-Kiwi, given it on account of its peculiar cry. It is a nocturnal bird, and preys on snails, insects, and worms. Whilst at rest it has the singular habit of resting on the tip of its bill, which is its most characteristic position.
It runs with considerable rapidity, and when hunted by dogs it makes a hole in the earth for the purpose of concealment, or it retires into the natural cavities of the rocks. When attacked it defends itself with considerable vigour. The natives hunt it for the sake of its skin, which is used by the chiefs for their dresses, and on this account it is highly valued.