Sub-familyGalaginæ, contains only the genusGalago(14 sp.), which is confined to the African continent, ranging from Senegal and Fernando Po to Zanzibar and Natal.
Family7.—TARSIIDÆ. (1 Genus, 1 Species.)
The curiousTarsius spectrum, which constitutes this family, inhabits Sumatra, Banca, and Borneo, and is also found in some parts of Celebes, which would bring it into the Australian region; but this island is altogether so anomalous that we can only consider its productions to have somewhat more affinity with the Australian than the Oriental region, but hardly to belong to either. The Tarsier is a small, long-tailed, nocturnal animal, of curious structure and appearance; and it forms the only link of connection with the next family, which it resembles in the extraordinary development of the toes, one of which is much larger and more slender than the rest. (Plate VIII., vol. i. p. 337.)
Family8.—CHIROMYIDÆ. (1 Genus, 1 Species.)
The Aye-aye, (Chiromys), the sole representative of this family, is confined to the island of Madagascar. It was for a long time very imperfectly known, and was supposed to belong to the Rodentia; but it has now been ascertained to be an exceedingly specialized form of the Lemuroid type, and must be considered to be one of the most extraordinary of the mammalia now inhabiting the globe. (Plate VI., vol. i., p. 278.)
Fossil Quadrumana.
Not much progress has yet been made in tracing back the various forms of Apes and Monkeys to their earliest appearance on the globe; but there have been some interesting recent discoveries, which lead us to hope that the field is not yet exhausted. The following is a summary of what is known as to the early forms of each family:—
Simiidæ.—Two or three species of this family have been found in the Upper Miocene deposits of France and Switzerland.Pliopithecus, of which a species has been found at each locality, was allied to the gibbons (Hylobates), and perhaps toSemnopithecus. A more remarkable form, namedDryopithecus, as large as a man, and having peculiarities of structure which are thought by Gervais and Lartet to indicate a nearer approach to the human form than any existing Ape, has been found in strata of the same age in France.
Semnopithecidæ.—Species ofSemnopithecushave been found in the Upper Miocene of Greece, and others in the Siwalik Hills of N. W. India, also of Upper Miocene age. An allied form also occurs in the Miocene of Wurtemburg.Mesopithecusfrom Greece is somewhat intermediate betweenSemnopithecusandMacacus.
Remains supposed to be ofSemnopithecus, have also occurred in the Pliocene of Montpellier.
Cynopithecidæ.—Macacushas occurred in Pliocene deposits at Grays, Essex; and also in the South of France along withCercopithecus.
Cebidæ.—In the caves of Brazil remains of the generaCebus,Mycetes,Callithrix, andHapale, have been found; as well as an extinct form of larger size—Protopithecus.
Lemuroidea.—A true lemur has recently been discovered in the Eocene of France; and it is supposed to be most nearly allied to the peculiar West African genera,PerodicticusandArctocebus.
Cænopithecus, from the Swiss Jura, is supposed to have affinities both for the Lemuridæ and the American Cebidæ.
In the lower Eocene of North America remains have beendiscovered, which are believed to belong to this sub-order: but they form two distinct families,—Lemuravidæ and Limnotheridæ. Other remains from the Miocene are believed to be intermediate between these and the Cebidæ,—a most interesting and suggestive affinity, if well founded. For the genera of these American Lemuroidea, see vol. i., p. 133.
General Remarks on the Distribution of Primates.
The most striking fact presented by this order, from our present point of view, is the strict limitation of well-marked families to definite areas. The Cebidæ and Hapalidæ would alone serve to mark out tropical America as the nucleus of one of the great zoological divisions of the earth. In the Eastern Hemisphere, the corresponding fact is the entire absence of the order from the Australian region, with the exception of one or two outlying forms, which have evidently transgressed the normal limits of their group. The separation of the Ethiopian and Oriental regions is, in this order, mainly indicated by the distribution of the genera, no one of which is common to the two regions. The two highest families, the Simiidæ and the Semnopithecidæ, are pretty equally distributed about two equatorial foci, one situated in West Africa, the other in the Malay archipelago,—in Borneo or the Peninsula of Malacca;—while the third family, Cynopithecidæ, ranges over the whole of both regions, and somewhat overpasses their limits. The Lemuroid group, on the other hand, offers us one of the most singular phenomena in geographical distribution. It consists of three families, the species of which are grouped into six sub-families and 13 genera. One of these families and two of the sub-families, comprising 7 genera, and no less than 30 out of the total of 50 species, are confined to the one island of Madagascar. Of the remainder, 3 genera, comprising 15 species, are spread over tropical Africa; while three other genera with 5 species, inhabit certain restricted portions of India and the Malay islands. These curious facts point unmistakably to the former existence of a large tract of land in what is now the Indian Ocean, connecting Madagascar on the one hand with Ceylon, and with the Malay countries on theother. About this same time (but perhaps not contemporaneously) Madagascar must have been connected with some portion of Southern Africa, and the whole of the country would possess no other Primates but Lemuroidea. After the Madagascar territory (very much larger than the existing island) had been separated, a connection appears to have been long maintained (probably by a northerly route) between the more equatorial portions of Asia and Africa; till those higher forms had become developed, which were afterwards differentiated intoSimia,Presbytes, andCynopithecus, on the one hand, and intoTroglodytes,Colobus, andCynocephalus, on the other. In accordance with the principle of competition so well expounded by Mr. Darwin, we can understand how, in the vast Asiatic and African area north of the Equator, with a great variety of physical conditions and the influence of a host of competing forms of life, higher types were developed than in the less extensive and long-isolated countries south of the Equator. In Madagascar, where these less complex conditions prevailed in a considerable land-area, the lowly organized Lemuroids have diverged into many specialized forms of their own peculiar type; while on the continents they have, to a great extent, become exterminated, or have maintained their existence in a few cases, in islands or in mountain ranges. In Africa the nocturnal and arborealGalagosare adapted to a special mode of life, in which they probably have few competitors.
How and when the ancestors of the Cebidæ and Hapalidæ entered the South American continent, it is less easy to conceive. The only rays of light we yet have on the subject are, the supposed affinities of the fossilCænopithecusof the Swiss, and the Lemuravidæ of the North American Eocene, with both Cebidæ and Lemuroids, and the fact that in Miocene or Eocene times a mild climate prevailed up to the Arctic circle. The discovery of an undoubted Lemuroid in the Eocene of Europe, indicates that the great Northern Continent was probably the birthplace of this low type of mammal, and the source whence Africa and Southern Asia were peopled with them, as it was, at a later period, with the higher forms of monkeys and apes.
Order II.—CHIROPTERA.
Family9.—PTEROPIDÆ. (9 Genera, 65 Species.)
The Pteropidæ, or fruit-eating Bats, sometimes called flying-foxes, are pretty evenly distributed over the tropical regions of the Old World and Australia. They range over all Africa and the whole of the Oriental Region, and northward, to Amoy in China and to the South of Japan. They are also found in the more fertile parts of Australia and Tasmania, and in the Pacific Islands as far east as the Marianne and Samoa Islands; but not in the Sandwich Islands or New Zealand.
The genera of bats are exceedingly numerous, but they are in a very unsettled state, and the synonymy is exceedingly confused. The details of their distribution cannot therefore be usefully entered into here. The Pteropidæ differ so much from all other bats, that they are considered to form a distinct suborder of Chiroptera, and by some naturalists even a distinct order of Mammalia.
No fossil Pteropidæ have been discovered.
Family10.—PHYLLOSTOMIDÆ. (31 Genera, 60 Species.)
The Phyllostomidæ, or simple leaf-nosed Bats, are confined to the Neotropical region, from Mexico and the Antilles to thesouthern limits of the forest region east of the Andes, and to about lat. 33° S. in Chili. None are found in the Nearctic region, with the exception of one species in California (Macrotus Californicus), closely allied to Mexican and West Indian forms. The celebrated blood-sucking vampyre bats of South America belong to this group. Two genera,DesmodusandDiphylla, form Dr. Peters' family Desmodidæ. Mr. Dobson, in his recently published arrangement, divides the family into five groups:—Mormopes, Vampyri, Glossophagæ, Stenodermata, and Desmodontes.
Numerous remains of extinct species of this family have been found in the bone-caves of Brazil.
Family11.—RHINOLOPHIDÆ. (7 Genera, 70 Species.)
The Rhinolophidæ, or Horse-shoe Bats (so-called from a curiously-shaped membranous appendance to the nose), range over all the Ethiopian and Oriental regions, the southern part of the Palæarctic region, Australia and Tasmania. They are most abundant and varied in the Oriental region, where twelve genera are found; while only five inhabit the Australian and Ethiopian regions respectively. Europe has only one genus and four species, mostly found in the southern parts, and none going further north than the latitude of England, where two species occur. Two others are found in Japan, at the opposite extremity of the Palæarctic region.
The generaNycterisandMegaderma, which range over the Ethiopian and Oriental regions to the Moluccas, are considered by Dr. Peters to form a distinct family, Megadermidæ; and Mr. Dobson in his recent arrangement (published after our firstvolume was printed) adopts the same family under the name of Nycteridæ. The curious Indian genusRhinopoma, which, following Dr. J. E. Gray, we have classed in this family, is considered by Mr. Dobson to belong to the Noctilionidæ.
Fossil Rhinolophidæ.—Remains of a species ofRhinolophusstill living in England, have been found in Kent's Cavern, near Torquay.
Family12.—VESPERTILIONIDÆ (18 Genera, 200 Species.)
The small bats constituting the family Vespertilionidæ, have no nose-membrane, but an internal earlet ortragus, and often very large ears. They range over almost the whole globe, being apparently only limited by the necessity of procuring insect food. In America they are found as far north as Hudson's Bay and the Columbia river; and in Europe they approach, if they do not pass the Arctic circle. Such remote islands as the Azores, Bermudas, Fiji Islands, Sandwich Islands, and New Zealand, all possess species of this group of bats, some of which probably inhabit every island in warm or temperate parts of the globe.
The genusTaphozous, which, in our Tables of Distribution in vol. i. we have included in this family, is placed by Mr. Dobson in his family Emballonuridæ, which is equivalent to our next family, Noctilionidæ.
Fossil Vespertilionidæ.—Several living European bats of this family—Scotophilus murinus,Plecotus auritus,Vespertilio noctula, andV. pipestrellus—have been found fossil in bone-caves in various parts of Europe.
Extinct species ofVespertiliohave occurred in the Lower Miocene at Mayence, in the Upper Miocene of the South of France, and in the Upper Eocene of the Paris basin.
Family13.—NOCTILIONIDÆ. (14 Genera, 50 Species.)
The Noctilionidæ, or short-headed Bats, are found in every region, but are very unequally distributed. Their head-quarters is the Neotropical region, where most of the genera occur, and where they range from Mexico to Buenos Ayres and Chili, while in North America there is only one species in California. They are unknown in Australia; but one species occurs in New Zealand, and another in Norfolk Island. Several species ofDysopes(orMolossus) inhabit the Oriental region; one or two species being widely distributed over the continent, while two others inhabit the Indo-Malayan Islands. A species of this same genus occurs in South Africa, and another in Madagascar and in the Island of Bourbon; while one inhabits Southern Europe and North Africa, and another is found at Amoy in China. It will be seen therefore, that these are really South American bats, which have a few allies widely scattered over the various regions of the globe. Their affinities are, according to Mr. Tomes, with the Phyllostomidæ, a purely South American family. The species which forms the connecting link is theMystacina tuberculata, a New Zealand bat, which may, with almost equal propriety be placed in either family, and which affords an interesting illustration of the many points of resemblance between the Australian and Neotropical regions.
Dr. Peters has separated this family into three,—Mormopidæ, which is wholly Neotropical, and is especially abundant in the West Indian Islands; Molossidæ, chiefly consisting of the genusMolossus; and Noctilionidæ, comprising the remainder of the family, and wholly Neotropical. Mr. Dobson, however, classes the Mormopes with the Phyllostomidæ, and reduces theMolossi to the rank of a sub-family. In our first volume we have classedRhinopomawith the Rhinolophidæ, andTaphozouswith the Vespertilionidæ; but according to Mr. Dobson both these genera belong to the present family.
Remarks on the Distribution of the Order Chiroptera.
Although the bats, from their great powers of flight, are not amenable to the limitations which determine the distribution of other terrestrial mammals, yet certain great facts of distribution come out in a very striking manner. The speciality of the Neotropical region is well shown, not only by its exclusive possession of one large family (Phyllostomidæ), but almost equally so by the total absence of two others (Pteropidæ and Rhinolophidæ). The Nearctic region is also unusually well marked, by the total absence of a family (Rhinolophidæ) which is tolerably well represented in the Palæarctic. The Pteropidæ well characterize the tropical regions of the Old World and Australia; while the Vespertilionidæ are more characteristic of the Palæarctic and Nearctic regions, which together possess about 60 species of this family.
The bats are a very difficult study, and it is quite uncertain how many distinct species are really known. Schinz, in hisSynopsis Mammalium(1844) describes 330, while the list given by Mr. Andrew Murray in hisGeographical Distribution of Mammalia(1866), contains 400 species. A small number of new species have been since described, but others have been sunk as synonyms, so that we can perhaps hardly obtain a nearer approximation to the truth than the last number. In Europe there are 35 species, and only 17 in North America.
Fossil Chiroptera.—The fossil remains of bats that have yet been discovered, being chiefly allied to forms still existing in the same countries, throw no light on the origin or affinities of this remarkable and isolated order of Mammalia; but as species very similar to those now living were in existence so far back as Miocene or even Eocene times, we may be sure the group is one of immense antiquity, and that there has been ample time for the amount of variation and extinction required to bring aboutthe limitation of types, and the peculiarities of distribution we now find to exist.
Order III.—INSECTIVORA.
Family14.—GALEOPITHECIDÆ. (1 Genus, 2 Species.)
The singular and isolated genusGaleopithecus, or flying lemur, has been usually placed among the Lemuroidea, but it is now considered to come best at the head of the Insectivora. Its food however, seems to be purely vegetable, and the very small, blind, and naked young, closely attached to the wrinkled skin of the mother's breast, perhaps indicates some affinity with the Marsupials. This animal seems, in fact, to be a lateral offshoot of some low form, which has survived during the process of development of the Insectivora, the Lemuroidea, and the Marsupials, from an ancestral type. Only two species are known, one found in Malacca, Sumatra, and Borneo, but not in Java; the other in the Philippine islands (Plate VIII. vol. i. p. 337).
Family15.—MACROSCELIDIDÆ. (3 Genera, 10 Species.)
The Macroscelides, or elephant shrews, are extraordinary little animals, with trunk-like snout and kangaroo-like hind-legs. They are almost confined to South Africa, whence they extend up the east coast as far as the Zambezi and Mozambique. Asingle outlying species ofMacroscelidesinhabits Barbary and Algeria; while the two generaPetrodromus, andRhyncocyon, each represented by a single species, have only been found at Mozambique.
Family16.—TUPAIIDÆ. (3 Genera, 10 species.)
The Tupaiidæ are squirrel-like shrews, having bushy tails, and often climbing up trees, but also feeding on the ground and among low bushes. The typicalTupaia(7 species), are called ground squirrels by the Malays. They are most abundant in the Malay islands and Indo-Chinese countries, but one species is found in the Khasia Mountains, and one in the Eastern Ghauts near Madras. The small shorter-tailedHylomys(2 species) is found from Tenasserim to Java and Borneo; while the elegant littlePtilocerus(1 species) with its long pencilled tail, is confined to Borneo; (Plate VIII. vol. i. p. 337). The family is therefore especially Malayan, with outlying species in northern and continental India.
Extinct Species.—Oxygomphus, found in the Tertiary deposits of Germany, is believed to belong to this family; as isOmomys, from the Pliocene of the United States.
Family17.—ERINACEIDÆ. (2 Genera, 15 Species.)
The Hedgehogs, comprised in the genusErinaceus(14 species), are widely distributed over the Palæarctic, and a part of theOriental regions; but they only occur in the Ethiopian region in South Africa and in the Deserts of the north, which more properly belong to the Palæarctic region. They are absent from the Malayan, and also from the Indo-Chinese sub-regions; except that they extend from the north of China to Amoy and Formosa and into the temperate highlands of the Western Himalayas. The curiousGymnura(1 species) is found in Borneo, Sumatra, and the Malay peninsula.
Extinct Species.—The common hedgehog has been found fossil in several Post-tertiary deposits, while extinct species occur in the lower Miocene of Auvergne and in some other parts of Europe. Many of these remains are classed in different genera from the living species;—(Amphechinus,Tetracus,Galerix.)
Family18.—CENTETIDÆ. (6 Genera, 10 Species.)
The Centetidæ are small animals, many of them having a spiny covering, whence the species ofCenteteshave been called Madagascar hedgehogs. The generaCentetes(2 species),Hemicentetes(1 species),Ericulus(1 species),Echinops(3 species), and the recently describedOryzorictes(1 species), are all exclusively inhabitants of Madagascar, and are almost or quite tail-less. The remaining genus,Solenodon, is a more slender and active animal, with a long, rat-like tail, shrew-like head, and coarse fur; and the two known species are among the very few indigenous mammals of the West Indian islands, one being found in Cuba (Plate XVII., vol. ii., p.67), the other in Hayti. Although presenting many points of difference in detail, the essential characters of this curious animal are, according to Professors Peters and Mivart, identical with the rest of the Centetidæ. We have thus a most remarkable and well-established case of discontinuous distribution, two portions of the same familybeing now separated from each other by an extensive continent, as well as by a deep ocean.
Extinct Species.—Remains found in the Lower Miocene of the South of France are believed to belong to the genusEchinops, or one closely allied to it.
Family19.—POTAMOGALIDÆ. (1 Genus, 1 Species.)
The genusPotamogalewas founded on a curious, small, otter-like animal from West Africa, first found by M. Du Chaillu at the Gaboon, and afterwards by the Portuguese at Angola. Its affinities are with several groups of Insectivora, but it is sufficiently peculiar to require the establishment of a distinct family for its reception. (Plate V., vol. i., p. 264.)
Family20.—CHRYSOCHLORIDÆ. (2 Genera, 3 Species.)
The Chrysochloridæ, or golden moles, of the Cape of Good Hope have been separated by Professor Mivart into two genera,ChrysochlorisandChalcochloris. They are remarkable mole-like animals, having beautiful silky fur, with a metallic lustre and changeable golden tints. They are peculiar to the Cape district, but one species extends as far north as the Mozambique territory. Their dentition is altogether peculiar, so as to completely separate them from the true moles.
Family21.—TALPIDÆ. (8 Genera, 19 Species.)
The Moles comprise many extraordinary forms of small mammalia especially characteristic of the temperate regions of the northern hemisphere, only sending out a few species ofTalpaalong the Himalayas as far as Assam, and even to Tenasserim, if there is no mistake about this locality; while one species is found in Formosa, the northern part of which is almost as much Palæarctic as Oriental. The genusTalpa(7 species), spreads over the whole Palæarctic region from Great Britain to Japan;Scaptochirus(1 species) is a recent discovery in North China;Condylura(1 species), the star-nosed mole, inhabits Eastern North America from Nova Scotia to Pennsylvania;Scapanus(2 species) ranges across from New York to St. Francisco;Scalops(3 species), the shrew-moles, range from Mexico to the great lakes on the east side of America, but on the west only to the north of Oregon. An allied genus,Myogale(2 species), has a curious discontinuous distribution in Europe, one species being found in South-East Russia, the other in the Pyrenees (Plate II., vol. i., p. 218). Another allied genus,Nectogale(1 species), has recently been described by Professor Milne-Edwards from Thibet.Urotrichusis a shrew-like mole which inhabits Japan, and a second species has been discovered in the mountains of British Columbia; an allied form,Uropsilus, inhabits East Thibet.AnurosorexandScaptonyx, are new genera from North China.
Extinct Species.—The common mole has been found fossil in bone-caves and diluvial deposits, and several extinct species of mole-like animals occur in the Miocene deposits of the South of France and of Germany. These have been described under the generic namesDimylus,Geotrypus,Hyporissus,Galeospalax; whilePalæospalaxhas been found in the Pliocene forest-beds of Norfolkand Ostend. Species ofMyogalealso occur from the Miocene downwards.
Family22.—SORICIDÆ. (1 Genus, 11 Sub-genera, 65 Species.)
The Shrews have a wide distribution, being found throughout every region except the Australian and Neotropical; although, as a species is found in Timor and in some of the Moluccas, they just enter this part of the former region, while one found in Guatemala brings them into the latter. A number of species have recently been described from India and the Malay Islands, so that the Oriental region is now the richest in shrews, having 28 species; the Nearctic comes next with 24; while the Ethiopian has 11, and the Palæarctic 10 species. The sub-genera areCrossopus,Amphisorex,Neosorex,Crocidura,Diplomesodon,Pinulia,Pachyura,Blarina,Feroculus,Anausorex.
Extinct Species.—Several species ofSorexhave been found fossil in the Miocene of the South of France, as well as the extinct generaMysarachneandPlesiosorex; and some existing species have occurred in Bone Caves and Diluvial deposits.
General Remarks on the Distribution of the Insectivora.
The most prominent features in the distribution of the Insectivora are,—their complete absence from South America and Australia; the presence ofSolenodonin two of the West Indian islands while the five allied genera are found only in Madagascar; and the absence of hedgehogs from North America. If we consider that there are only 135 known species of the order, 65 of which belong to the one genusSorex; while the remaining 26 genera contain only 70 species, which have to be classed in 8 distinct families, and present such divergent and highly specialized forms asGaleopithecus,Erinaceus,Solenodon, andCondylura, it becomes evident that we have here the detached fragments of a much moreextensive group of animals, now almost extinct. Many of the forms continue to exist only in islands, removed from the severe competition of a varied mammalian population, as in Madagascar and the Antilles; while others appear to have escaped extermination either by their peculiar habits—as the various forms of Moles; by special protection—as in the Hedgehogs; or by a resemblance in form, coloration, and habits to dominant groups in their own district—as the Tupaias of Malay which resemble squirrels, and the Elephant-shrews of Africa which resemble the jerboas. The numerous cases of isolated and discontinuous distribution among the Insectivora, offer no difficulty from this point of view; since they are the necessary results of an extensive and widely-spread group of animals slowly becoming extinct, and continuing to exist only where special conditions have enabled them to maintain themselves in the struggle with more highly organized forms.
The fossil Insectivora do not throw much light on the early history of the order, since even as far back as the Miocene period they consist almost wholly of forms which can be referred to existing families. In North America they go back to the Eocene period, if certain doubtful remains have been rightly placed. The occurrence of fossil Centetidæ in Europe, supports the view we have maintained in preceding chapters, that the existing distribution of this family between Madagascar and the Antilles, proves no direct connection between those islands, but only shows us that the family once had an extensive range.
Order IV—CARNIVORA.
Family23.—FELIDÆ. (3 Genera, 14 Sub-genera, 66 Species.)
The Cats are very widely distributed over the earth—with the exception of the Australian region and the island sub-regionof Madagascar and the Antilles—universally; ranging from the torrid zone to the Arctic regions and the Straits of Magellan. They are so uniform in their organization that many naturalists group them all under one genus,Felis; but it is now more usual to class at least the lynxes as a separate genus, while the hunting leopard, or cheetah, forms another. Dr. J. E. Gray divides these again, and makes 17 generic groups; but as this subdivision is not generally adopted, and does not bring out any special features of geographical distribution, I shall not further notice it.
The genusFelis(56 species) has the same general range as the whole family, except that it does not go so far north; the Amoor river in Eastern Asia, and 55° N. Lat. in America, marking its limits.Lyncus(10 species) is a more northern group, ranging to the polar regions in Europe and Asia, and to Lat. 66° N. in America, but not going further south than Northern Mexico and the European shores of the Mediterranean, except the caracal, which may be another genus, and which extends to Central India, Persia, North Africa and even the Cape of Good Hope. The lynxes are thus almost wholly peculiar to the Nearctic and Palæarctic regions.Cynælurus(1 species) the hunting leopard, ranges from Southern and Western India through Persia, Syria, Northern and Central Africa, to the Cape of Good Hope.
Extinct Felidæ.—More than twenty extinct species of true Felidæ have been described, ranging in time from the epoch of prehistoric man back to the Miocene or even the Eocene period. They occur in the south of England, in Central and South Europe, in North-West India, in Nebraska in North America, and in the caves of Brazil. Most of them are referred to the genusFelis, and closely resemble the existing lions, tigers, and other large cats. Another group however forms the genusMachairodus, a highly specialized form with serrated teeth. Five species have been described from Europe, Northern India, and both North and South America; and it is remarkable that they exhibit at least as wide a range, both in space and time, as the more numerous species referred toFelis. One of them undoubtedly coexistedwith man in England, while another, as well as the alliedDinictis, has been found in the Mauvaises Terres of Nebraska, associated withAnchitheriumand other extinct and equally remarkable forms, which are certainly Miocene if not, as some geologists think, belonging to the Eocene period. These facts clearly indicate that we have as yet made little approach to discovering the epoch when Felidæ originated, since the oldest forms yet discovered are typical and highly specialized representatives of a group which is itself the most specialized of the Carnivora. Another genus,Pseudælurus, is common to the Miocene deposits of Europe and North America.
Family 24.—CRYPTOPROCTIDÆ. (1 Genus, 1 Species.)
TheCryptoprocta ferox, a small and graceful cat-like animal, peculiar to Madagascar, was formerly classed among the Viverridæ, but is now considered by Professor Flower to constitute a distinct family between the Cats and the Civets.
Family25.—VIVERRIDÆ. (8-33 Genera, 100 Species.)
The Viverridæ comprise a number of small and moderate-sized carnivorous animals, popularly known as civets, genets, and ichneumons, highly characteristic of the Ethiopian and Oriental regions, several of the genera being common to both. A species ofGenetta, and one ofHerpestes, inhabit South Europe; whileViverraextends to the Moluccas, but is doubtfully indigenous. The extreme geographical limits of the family are marked byGenettain France and Spain,Viverrain Shanghae and Batchian Island, andHerpestesin Java and the Cape of Good Hope.
The following are the genera with their distribution as given by Dr. J. E. Gray in his latest British Museum Catalogue:
Sub-familyViverrinæ.—Viverra(3 species), North and tropical Africa, the whole Oriental region to the Moluccas;Viverricula(1 species) India to Java;Genetta(5 species), South Europe, Palestine, Arabia, and all Africa;Fossa(1 species), Madagascar;Linsang(2 species), Malacca to Java;Poiana(1 species), West Africa;Galidia(3 species), Madagascar;Hemigalea(1 species), Malacca and Borneo;Arctictis(1 species) Nepal to Sumatra and Java;Nandinia(1 species), West Africa;Paradoxurus(9 species), the whole Oriental region;Paguma(3 species), Nepal to China, Sumatra, and Borneo;Arctogale(1 species), Tenasserim to Java.
Sub-familyHerpestinæ.—Cynogale(1 species), Borneo;Galidictis(2 species), Madagascar;Herpestes(22 species), South Palæarctic, Ethiopian, and Oriental regions;Athylax(3 species), Tropical and South Africa;Galogale(13 species), all Africa, North India, to Cambodja;Galerella(1 species), East Africa;Calictis(1 species), Ceylon (?);Ariella(1 species), South Africa;Ichneumia(4 species), Central, East, and South Africa;Bdeogale(3 species), West and East Africa;Urva(1 species), Himalayas to Aracan;Tæniogale(1 species), Central India;Onychogale(1 species), Ceylon;Helogale(2 species) East and South Africa;Cynictis(3 species), South Africa.
Sub-familyRhinogalidæ.—Rhinogale(1 species), East Africa;Mungos(3 species), all Africa;Crossarchus(1 species), Tropical Africa;Eupleres(1 species), Madagascar;Suricata(1 species), South Africa.
Fossil Viverridæ.—Several species ofViverraandGenettahave been found in the Upper Miocene of France, and many extinct genera have also been discovered. The most remarkable of these wasIctitherium, from the Upper Miocene of Greece, which has also been found in Hungary, Bessarabia, and France. Some of the species were larger than any living forms of Viverridæ, and approached the hyænas. Other extinct genera areThalassictisandSoricictisfrom the Upper Miocene, the former as large as a panther;Tylodon, of small size, from the Upper Eocene; andPalæonyctisfrom the Lower Eocene, also small and showing a very great antiquity for this family, if really belonging to it.
Family26.—PROTELIDÆ. (1 Genus, 1 Species.)
The curiousProtelesor Aard-wolf, a highly-modified form of hyæna, approaching the ichneumons, and feeding on white ants and carrion, is peculiar to South Africa.
Family27.—HYÆNIDÆ. (1 Genus, 3 Species.)
The Hyænas are characteristically Ethiopian, to which region two of the species are confined. The third,Hyæna striata, ranges over all the open country of India to the foot of the Himalayas, and through Persia, Asia Minor, and North Africa. Its fossil remains have been found in France.
Extinct Species.—The cave hyæna (H. spelæa) occurs abundantly in the caverns of this country and of Central Europe, and is supposed to be most nearly allied to theH. crocutaof South Africa. Another species is found in some parts of France. The earliest known true hyænas occur in the Pliocene formation in France, in the Red Crag (Older Pliocene) of England, and in the Upper Miocene of the Siwalik hills. In the Miocene period in Europe, quite distinct genera are found, such as Hyænictis andLycænafrom the Upper Miocene of Greece;Ictitherium, supposed to be intermediate between Viverridæ and Hyænidæ; andThalassictis, uniting the weasels and hyænas.
Family28.—CANIDÆ. (3 Genera, 17 Sub-Genera, 54 Species.)
The Canidæ, comprising the animals commonly known as dogs, wolves, and foxes, have an almost universal range over the earth, being only absent from the island sub-regions of Madagascar, the Antilles, Austro-Malaya, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. With the exception of two remarkable forms—the hyæna dog (Lycaon picta), and the great-eared fox (Megalotis Lalandei), both from South Africa—all the species are usually placed in the genusCanis, the distribution of which will be the same as that of the family. Dr. J. E. Gray, in his arrangement of the family (Proc. Zool. Soc., 1868), subdivides it into fifteen genera, the names and general distribution of which are as follows:—
Icticyon(1 species), Brazil;Cuon(4 species), Siberia to Java;Lupus(5 species), North America, Europe, India to Ceylon;Dieba(1 species), North and West Africa;Simenia(1 species), Abyssinia;Chrysocyon(2 species), North and South America;Canis(4 species), India, Australia (indigenous?)Lycalopex(2 species), South America;Pseudalopex(5 species), South America and Falkland Islands;Thous(2 species), South America to Chili;Vulpes(17 species), all the great continents, except South America and Australia;Fennecus(4 species), all Africa;Leucocyon(1 species), Arctic regions;Urocyon(2 species), North America;Nyctereutes(1 species), Japan, Amoorland to Canton (Plate III., vol. i. p. 226). These are all sub-genera according to Professor Carus, exceptIcticyon. The same author makes Lycaon a sub-genus, while Dr. Gray makes it a sub-family!
Extinct Species.—The dog, wolf, and fox, are found fossil incaverns in many parts of Europe, and several extinct species have been found in Tertiary deposits in Europe, North India, and South America. Two species have been found so far back as the Eocene of France, but the fragments discovered are not sufficient to determine the characters with any certainty. In North America, several species ofCanisoccur in the Pliocene of Nebraska and La Plata. The genusGalecynus, of the Pliocene of Œninghen, andPalæocyon, of the Brazilian caves, are supposed to belong to the Canidæ.Amphicyonabounded in the Miocene period, both in Europe and North America; and some of the species were as large as a tiger. Other extinct genera are,Cynodictis,Cyotherium, andGalethylax, from the Eocene of France;Pseudocyon,Simocyon, andHemicyon, from the Miocene; but all these show transition characters to Viverridæ or Ursidæ, and do not perhaps belong to the present family.
Family29.—MUSTELIDÆ. (21-28 Genera, 92 Species.)
The Mustelidæ constitute one of those groups which range over the whole of the great continental areas. They may be divided into three sub-families—one, the Mustelinæ, containing the weasels, gluttons, and allied forms; a second, the Lutrinæ, containing the otters; and a third, often considered a distinct family, the Melininæ, containing the badgers, ratels, skunks, and their allies.
In the first group (Mustelinæ) the generaMartesandPutorius(13 species), range over all the Palæarctic region, and a considerable part of the Oriental, extending through India to Ceylon, and to Java and Borneo. Two species ofMartes(=Mustelaof Baird) occur in the United States. The weasels, forming the genusMustela(20 species), have a still wider range, extending into tropical Africa and the Cordilleras of Peru, butnot going south of the Himalayas in India. The North American species are placed in the genusPutoriusby Professor Baird. An allied genus,Gymnopus(4 species), is confined to the third and fourth Oriental sub-regions.Gulo(1 species), the glutton, is an arctic animal keeping to the cold regions of Europe and Asia, and coming as far south as the great lakes in North America.Galictis(2 species), the grisons, are confined to the Neotropical region.
The Otters (Lutrinæ) range over the whole area occupied by the family. They have been subdivided into a number of groups, such asBarangia(1 species), found only in Sumatra;Lontra, containing 3 South American species;Lutra(7 species), ranging over the whole of the Palæarctic and Oriental regions;Nutria(1 species), a sea-otter confined to the west coast of America from California to Chiloe;Lutronectes(1 species), from Japan only;Aonyx(5 species), found in West and South Africa, and the third and fourth Oriental sub-regions.Hydrogale(1 species), confined to South Africa;Latax(2 species), Florida and California to Canada and British Columbia;Pteronura(1 species), Brazil and Surinam; andEnhydris(1 species), the peculiar sea-otter of California, Kamschatka and Japan. The last two are the only groups of otters, besidesLutra, admitted by Professor Carus as genera.
The Badgers and allies (Melininæ) have also a wide range, but with one exception are absent from South America. They comprise the following genera:Arctonyx(1 species), Nepal to Aracan;Meles(4 species), North Europe to Japan, and China as far south as Hongkong (Plate I., vol. i., p. 195);Taxidea(2 species), Central and Western North America to 58° N. Lat.;Mydaus(1 species), mountains of Java and Sumatra;Melivora(3 species), Tropical and South Africa and India to foot of Himalayas;Mephitis(12 species), America from Canada and British Columbia to the Straits of Magellan (Plate XX., vol. ii., p.136).Ictonyx(2 species), Tropical Africa to the Cape;Helictis(4 species), Nepal to Java, Formosa and Shanghai (Plate VII., vol. i. p. 331).
Fossil Mustelidæ.—Species of otter, weasel, badger, and glutton, occur in European bone caves and other Post-tertiary deposits; and in North AmericaGalictis, now found only in the Neotropical region, and, withMephitis, occurring in Brazilian caves.