insects and slugs, but also chickens and young game birds, and lastly
vipers. Four, or in some cases as many as five or six, young are produced
at a birth; they are blind, with soft and flexible white spines. In hot and
dry weather Hedgehogs disappear; they come forth in rainy weather. The
English Hedgehog, as is well known, hibernates. The Indian species do not.
The Hedgehog is occasionally spineless, which condition may be regarded as
an atavistic reversion.[382]
The Hedgehog has acquired the reputation of carrying off apples transfixed
upon its spines. Blumenbach thus quaintly describes this and other habits
of the animal, whose English name he gives as "hedgidog": "Il se nourrit
des productions des deux regnes organises, miaule comme un chat, et peut
avaler une quantite enorme de mouches cantharides. Il est certain qu'il
pique les fruits avec les epines de son dos, et les porte ainsi dans son
terrier."[383]
The Miocene _Palaeoerinaceus_ is so little different from _Erinaceus_ that
it is really hardly generically separable. _Erinaceus_ is therefore clearly
one of the oldest living genera of mammals.
_Necrogymnura_ of the same epoch and the same beds (Quercy Phosphorites) is
doubtless an ancestral form. The palate is {511} perforated as in
_Erinaceus_ (it is not so in _Gymnura_ and _Hylomys_), but on the whole it
comes nearest to _Hylomys_.
FAM. 2. TUPAIIDAE.--This family contains the genera _Tupaia_ and
_Ptilocercus_. _Tupaia_ is Oriental in range, extending as far east as
Borneo. There are a dozen or so of species, which are generally arboreal
and have the outward aspect of Squirrels. It has been suggested that this
is a case of mimicry, the animal gaining some advantage by its likeness to
the Rodent. The name Tupaia, it should be added, means Squirrel, and the
long-nosed Squirrel, _Sciurus laticaudatus_, is so extraordinarily like it
that "one has to look at the teeth" to distinguish them. Moreover this
Squirrel, like some Tupaias, lives largely on the ground among fallen logs.
_Tupaia_ resembles a Lemur in the complete orbit. The dental formula is
I 2/3 C 1/1 Pm 3/3 M 3/3 = 38. The sublingua, too, is stated by Garrod to
be like that of _Chiromys_. There is a minute caecum in _T. belangeri_,
none in _T. tana_.
_Ptilocercus_[384] has a pen-like posterior portion to the tail, a
modification which is found in other groups of animals. The tail of certain
Phalangers, for instance, shows this same modification. The rest of the
tail is scaly. The animal, as was pointed out by Dr. Gray,[385] looks very
much like a Phalanger. The orbit is entire as in _Tupaia_. The fingers and
toes are five. The one species, called after Sir Hugh Low, G.C.M.G., _P.
lowi_, is a Bornean animal.
FAM. 3. CENTETIDAE.--This family is entirely confined to the Island of
Madagascar. It includes some seven genera. The best-known genus is
_Centetes_. _C. ecaudatus_, the Tanrec, Tenrec, or Tendrac, is an animal a
foot or so in length, without a tail, and with forty-four teeth.[386] The
immature animal is so different from the parent as to appear quite a
different form. It has three narrow rows of spines along the back, which do
not wholly disappear until the permanent dentition has been acquired. Even
then the hairs are of a rather spiny character, particularly those upon the
back of the head, which are erected when the animal is {512} annoyed. The
Tanrec feeds mainly upon earthworms. It is "probably the most prolific of
all animals," since as many as twenty-one young are said to have been
brought forth at a birth. Some Opossums, however, have twenty-five teats.
[Illustration]
FIG. 248.--Skull of Tenrec. _Centetes ecaudatus._ _fr_, Frontal; _max_,
maxilla; _pa_, parietal; _p.max_, premaxilla; _sq_, squamosal. (After
Dobson.)
_Hemicentetes_[387] is a genus with two species. These have spines mixed
with the fur of the back. There is no caecum in this or in other
Centetidae. The teeth are forty in number, there being only three molars.
_Ericulus setosus_ is a small Insectivore, resembling externally a small
Hedgehog. It is covered with close-set spines which, unlike what is found
in _Erinaceus_, extend over the short tail. The total number of teeth is
thirty-six, the formula being I 2/2 C 1/1 Pm 3/3 M 3/3.
_Echinops_[388] is another spiny genus which is a stage in advance of
_Ericulus_, for still another molar has been lost, reducing the total
number of teeth to thirty-two. The dental formula is thus I 2/2 C 1/1
Pm 3/3 M 2/2. The zygomata are reduced to mere threads.
_Microgale_, a genus recently instituted by Mr. Thomas, is a small furry
Insectivore with a long tail, which is more than double the length of the
head and body. There are no less than forty-seven vertebrae in the tail,
which is relatively longer than that of any other mammal.
_Limnogale_, discovered by Forsyth Major, is an aquatic genus, also furry
and not spiny, which has departed from the Centetid type and taken to an
aquatic life. The single species, {513} _L. mergulus_, is about the size of
_Mus rattus_; it has webbed toes and a powerful laterally-compressed tail.
Clavicles are present, which is not the case with _Potamogale_.
_Oryzoryctes_ is a Mole-like Centetid. It has fossorial fore-limbs, but a
fairly long tail. This genus is furry like the last two. It is said to
burrow in the rice-fields and to do much harm. The teeth are forty in
number, three incisors and three molars in each half of each jaw.
FAM. 4. POTAMOGALIDAE.--This family contains two genera, _Potamogale_ and
_Geogale_.
_Potamogale velox_ is a West African animal, which though an Insectivore
has the habits of an Otter. It is "somewhat larger than a stoat." The upper
surface of the body is dark brown, the belly brownish yellow. It has a flat
head and a long tail like the Stoat, but the tail is laterally compressed
and very thick. The eyes are very small; the nostril has valves. The toes
are not webbed; but the second and third toes are united for the whole
length of their first phalanges. Along the outer side of the foot is a thin
extension of the integument. In swimming the feet are drawn up along the
body, hence webbing would be of no use; but the thin flattening prevents
the edge of the foot from acting as a hindrance to the motion of the
animal. M. du Chaillu describes it as catching fish, which it pursues with
extreme rapidity in the clear mountain streams it frequents; but Dr.
Dobson, remarking that no stomachs have been examined, thinks that water
insects are more probably its prey. It is not known whether the animal
possesses a caecum. The tooth formula[389] is I 3/3 C 1/1 Pm 3/3 M 3/3. The
animal is exceptional among the Insectivora in having no clavicles.[390]
There are sixteen ribs; there is no zygomatic arch, and the pterygoids
converge posteriorly.
_Geogale_, with one species, _G. aurita_, is a small representative of this
family from Madagascar. It has only thirty-four teeth. When better known it
may be necessary, thinks Mr. Lydekker, to make this animal the type of a
separate family. The tibia and fibula are distinct, not confluent with one
another as in _Potamogale_.
FAM. 5. SOLENODONTIDAE.--This family contains but a single genus. {514}
_Solenodon._ This genus, including two species, one from Cuba, the other
from Hayti, was at one time referred to the Centetidae. It offers, however,
numerous points of difference from the members of that family with some
general points of agreement. Possibly its isolation in the two West Indian
islands mentioned is comparable to the isolation of the Centetidae in
Madagascar; they are both survivors of an ancient group of Insectivores
extinct elsewhere. _Solenodon_ has nearly the complete dentition. It has
lost only one premolar, and has therefore forty teeth in all. The formula
is thus I 3/3 C 1/1 Pm 3/3 M 3/3. It also differs from the Centetidae in
having only two inguinal mammae instead of both inguinal and thoracic; the
penis of the male does not project from a cloaca, but lies forward. On the
other hand, the molars have their cusps arranged in the [391]-fashion of
the Centetidae, a fact, however, which, in the opinion of some, merely
points to an ancient trituberculism not indicative of special affinity. It
has, moreover, no zygoma in the skull, and there is no caecum. Dr. Dobson
has furthermore tabulated a number of differences in muscular anatomy
between the two families. _Solenodon_ has a long naked tail. The snout,
always developed in Insectivores, is extraordinarily long in this genus. It
is a furry, not a spiny animal. _S. cubanus_ is liable to fits of rage when
irritated, a feature which it has in common with Shrews and Moles; it is
also stated to have the ostrich-like way of concealing its head in a
crevice, "apparently thinking itself then secure." But nothing is known of
the genus in a wild state.
FAM. 6. CHRYSOCHLORIDAE.--This family contains only the genus
_Chrysochloris_, comprising some five species, all natives of Africa south
of the equator. The scientific name of the genus, and also the vernacular
name Cape Golden Mole, are derived from the beautiful iridescent hairs
which are intermingled with softer and non-iridescent fur. _Chrysochloris_
has [392]-shaped cusped teeth like those that are possessed by the
Centetidae and Solenodontidae. In the skull as in the Macroscelidae, etc.,
but not in the Centetidae, there are complete zygomata. They are Moles in
habit, and the eyes are covered with skin; the ears, moreover, have no
conches. The teeth are forty or thirty-six in number, the reduction being
caused by the losing of a molar in those forms which possess the smaller
number.[393] It is interesting to notice that the {515} adaptation to a
digging life is brought about in quite a different way from that of the
true Moles (_Talpa_). In the latter the fore-limbs are changed in position
by the elongation of the manubrium sterni, carrying with it the clavicles,
which are extraordinarily shortened (Fig. 251). In _Chrysochloris_, on the
other hand, the same need (_i.e._ that the limbs project as little as
possible from the sides of the body, while the length of the limbs is
retained, and the leverage of the muscles unaffected) is provided for by a
hollowing out of the walls of the thorax, the ribs and the sternum being
here convex inwards. The sternum and the clavicles are not modified. The
tibia and fibula are ankylosed below. In the manus, moreover, there are but
four digits, of which the two middle ones are greatly enlarged. In the
Moles there are five fingers, and all are enlarged; there is, too, a great
radial sesamoid bone, which is as good as a sixth finger (which, indeed, it
is considered to be, in common with similar structures in other animals, by
some anatomists). The foot has only four toes.
[Illustration]
FIG. 249.--Golden Mole. _Chrysochloris trevelyani._ A, Lower surface of
fore-foot. x 1/2. (After Guenther.)
FAM. 7. MACROSCELIDAE.[394]--This family contains three genera, all of them
African in range, and mainly Ethiopian.
_Macroscelides_, the Elephant Shrews, are jumping creatures of Shrew-like
appearance, combined with a Marsupial look. Both radius and ulna, and tibia
and fibula, are ankylosed. There {516} are five fingers and toes. There is
a caecum as in but few Insectivores. The tooth formula, as revised by
Thomas,[395] is I 3/3 C 1/1 Pm 4/4 M 2/(2 or 3), the total number being
thus forty or forty-two. There are several species of this genus.
[Illustration]
FIG. 250.--_Rhynchocyon chrysopygus._ x 1/4. (After Guenther.)
_Rhynchocyon_ and _Petrodromus_ differ from _Macroscelides_ in not having
such long hind-legs. The dental formula of the first is I (1 or 0)/3 C 1/1
Pm 4/4 M 2/2 = 34 or 36, of the latter I 3/3 C 1/1 Pm 4/4 M 2/2 = 40. In
_Petrodromus_ the toes are reduced to four; in _Rhynchocyon_ there are only
four digits in the manus as well as in the pes. This animal, as its name
implies, has a longish proboscis, which can be bent, and is really very
like a miniature Elephant's trunk, and also like that of the Desman
(_Myogale_). It has thirteen pairs of ribs, and a well-developed caecum.
Dr. Guenther has pointed out that in _Petrodromus tetradactylus_ the hairs
of the lower part of the tail are stiff elastic bristles 5 mm. long, with a
swelling at the free tip. The use of this singular modification is not at
all apparent. _Pseudorhynchocyon_, of European Oligocene, is believed to be
related to this family.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
FIG. 251.--Sternum and sternal ribs of the Common Mole (_Talpa europaea_),
with the clavicles (_cl_) and humeri (_H_); _M_, Manubrium sterni. Nat.
size. (From Flower's _Osteology_.)
FIG. 252.--Bones of fore-arm and manus of Mole (_Talpa europaea_). x 2.
_C_, Cuneiform; _ce_, centrale; _l_, lunar; _m_, magnum; _p_, pisiform;
_R_, radius; _rs_, radial sesamoid (falciform); _s_, scaphoid; _td_,
trapezoid; _tm_, trapezium; _U_, ulna; _u_, unciform; _I-V_, the digits.
(From Flower's _Osteology_.)
FAM. 8. TALPIDAE.--This family is confined to the Palaearctic and Nearctic
regions, or practically so, being fairly equally {517} distributed as
regards genera; a Mole just gets over the boundary into the Oriental
region. The genus _Talpa_ is entirely Old World in range, and includes
several species, of which the Common Mole, _T. europaea_, is the best
known. There are forty teeth, one of the molars of the full mammalian
dentition not being represented. In the milk dentition there is an
additional premolar, not represented by a successor in the permanent
dentition. The formula is thus I 3/3 C 1/1 Pm 4/4 M 3/3. There are no
external ears, and the eyes are rudimentary; the soft silky fur is familiar
to everybody. The sternum has a strong crest, associated with a powerful
development of the pectoral muscles, so necessary to a burrowing animal.
The animal, it is hardly necessary to state, lives underground in burrows
excavated by itself, which have not, it has been stated, the elaborate and,
it appears, fanciful shape assigned to them by many writers. At times Moles
appear above ground. {518} Their principal food consists of earthworms, and
it may not be out of place to quote Topsell's quaint account of their
pursuit of the annelids: "When the wormes are followed by molds (for by
digging and heaving they foreknow their owne perdition) they fly to the
superficies and very toppe of the earth, the silly beast knowing that the
molde, their adversary, dare not followe them into the light, so that their
wit in flying their enemy is greater than in turning againe when they are
troade upon." It has lately been said[396] that Moles store up earthworms
for consumption during the winter, biting off their heads to prevent their
crawling away.
_Scalops_, an American genus, is a Mole-like creature of largely aquatic
habits, as its webbed hind-feet show; it has a short, naked tail.
Apparently, like the Shrews, it has no lower canines.
_Condylura_, another American genus, is called the Star-nosed Mole on
account of a curious radiating structure at the end of the snout.
_Myogale_, the Desman, is still more aquatic in habit, and connects the
Moles with the Shrews, though, as in many of the former, it has lower
canines. It has webbed hind-feet and a long tail. One species occurs in the
Pyrenees, the other in Russia. A few other genera (_Urotrichus_,
_Uropsilus_, _Scaptonyx_, _Dymecodon_, _Scapasius_, _Perascalops_) belong
to the same family.
FAM. 9. SORICIDAE.--The true Shrews have a much wider range than other
families of the present order. In the Palaearctic region are found _Sorex_,
_Crossopus_, _Crocidura_, _Nectogale_, _Chimarrogale_. The first is also
Nearctic, and reaches Central America. In the Ethiopian region is the
single peculiar genus _Myosorex_, but _Crocidura_ occurs there also.
_Blarina_ and _Notiosorex_ are "Sonoran" in range; _Soriculus_ Oriental.
_Crocidura_, _Anurosorex_, and _Chimarrogale_ also enter this region.
_Sorex_ has teeth tipped with reddish colour, its dental formula being,
according to Mr. Woodward's recent researches, I 3/(2 or 3) C 1/0 Pm 3/1
M 3/3 = 32 or 34.
As compared with other Insectivores, therefore, the most remarkable fact
found throughout the family is the absence of the lower canines. In
addition to this the genus may be known--the family indeed--by the large
size of the first pair of incisors. In the above formula it is possible,
thinks Mr. Woodward, that there may be errors; he is not certain whether
the supposed {519} upper canine may not be a fourth incisor, and whether
the first premolar may not be really the canine. Another peculiar feature
about the dentition of _Sorex_ is the suppression of the teeth of the milk
dentition, which are functionless, and probably uncalcified. The genus
_Sorex_ is terrestrial. The tail is long and covered with hairs. There are
two species in this country, _S. vulgaris_ and _S. minutus_. The former is
the Shrew of legend and superstition; and it is no doubt the species that
has lent its name to the more untameable members of the softer sex, though
it is the males which are especially pugnacious. As to legend, everybody
has heard of the shrew ash whose leaves, after a Shrew has been inserted
living into a hole cleft in the tree, are a specific for diseases of
cattle, caused by the Shrew itself creeping over them.
The Rev. Edward Topsell, author of _The Historie of Four-footed Beastes_,
who defends his veracity by asserting that he does not write "for the rude
and vulgar sort, who being utterly ignorant of the operation of learning,
do presently condemne al strange things," says of the Shrew that "it is a
ravening beast, feigning itself gentle and tame, but, being touched, it
biteth deep and poysoneth deadly. It beareth a cruel minde, desiring to
hurt anything, neither is there any creature that it loveth, or it loveth
him, because it is feared of all." It is probable that all this rustic
feeling is due to the powerful effluvium which the Shrew undoubtedly emits.
_S. minutus_ has the distinction of being the smallest British mammal; it
is scarcer than the last. This form is found upon the Alps, as is also the
peculiarly Alpine species _S. alpinus_, which inhabits the Alps, Pyrenees,
Carpathians, and the Hartz.
_Crossopus fodiens_, the Water Shrew, has also brown-stained teeth. It is
not uncommon in this country, and lives in burrows excavated by the sides
of the streams which it affects.
Besides these two genera, _Soriculus_, _Blarina_, and _Notiosorex_ have
red-tipped teeth. In _Crocidura_, _Myosorex_, _Diplomesodon_, _Anurosorex_,
_Chimarrogale_, and _Nectogale_ the teeth are white-tipped. These are all
the genera of the family allowed by the late Dr. Dobson in a review of that
family.[397]
_Chimarrogale_ and _Nectogale_ are aquatic genera. The former {520}
consists of a Himalayan and Bornean, and of a Japanese species, which have
not webbed feet, but have a tail with a fringe of elongated hairs.
_Nectogale elegans_ is one of the characteristic animals of the Thibetan
plateau. It has webbed feet. The teeth are as in _Chimarrogale_ I 3/2 C 1/0
Pm 1/1 M 3/3.
The other genera are terrestrial in habit.
SUB-ORDER 2. DERMOPTERA.
[Illustration]
FIG. 253.--_Galeopithecus volans._ x 1/3. (After Vogt and Specht.)
The family GALEOPITHECIDAE contains but one genus, which has been at times
referred to the Lemurs, to the Bats, or has been made the type of a special
order of mammals. It is better to regard it as an aberrant Insectivore--so
different indeed from other forms that it requires a special sub-order for
its reception. {521}
_Galeopithecus_[398] inhabits the Oriental region. It is a larger animal
than any other Insectivore, about the size of a Cat, and has a patagium
extending between the neck and the fore-limb, between the fore-limb and the
hind-limb, and between the hind-limb and the tail. This patagium is
abundantly supplied with musculature, but the fingers are not elongated as
in the Bats for its support. In the degree of its development, however, the
patagium of this creature is midway between that of _Sciuropterus_ on the
one hand, and the Bats on the other. It presents many remarkable features
in its organisation. The brain is like that of the Insectivora in the
exposure of the corpora quadrigemina by the slight extension backward of
the cerebral hemispheres; but its upper surface is marked by two
longitudinal furrows on each side, a state of affairs (in combination)
which is unparalleled among the Mammalia. The teeth are peculiar by reason
of the singular "comb-like" structure of the lower incisors. This, however,
is an exaggeration of what is to be found in _Rhynchocyon_ and
_Petrodromus_, while the same style of tooth, though not so highly
developed, characterises certain Bats. The Tupaiidae and certain Lemurs
show what Dr. Leche regards as the beginning of the same thing. As in
_Tupaia_ also there is an indication of the characteristically Lemurine
sublingua. The stomach is more specialised than in other Insectivores, the
pyloric region being extended as a narrowish tube. There is a caecum. A
peculiarity of the intestinal tract is that the large intestine is longer
than the small.
ORDER XII. CHIROPTERA.
We may thus define the Bats:--Flying mammals, with the phalanges of the
four digits of the hand following the pollex greatly elongated, and
supporting between themselves and the hind-limbs and tail a thin
integumental membrane, which forms the wing. The radius is long and curved;
the ulna rudimentary. The knee is directed backwards, owing to the rotation
of the limb outward by the wing membrane. From the inner side of the
ankle-joint arises a cartilaginous process, the calcar, which supports the
interfemoral part of the wing {522} membrane. The mammae are thoracic; the
placenta discoidal and deciduate. The cerebral hemispheres, which are
smooth, do not extend over the cerebellum.
[Illustration]
FIG. 254.--Barbastelle. _Synotus barbastellus._ x 1/2. (After Vogt and
Specht.)
This large order of mammals was once placed with the Primates. There is no
doubt, however, that they form a perfectly distinct order; no knowledge of
fossil forms in any way bridges over the gap which distinguishes them from
the highest mammals. The most salient feature in their organisation is
clearly the wings. These consist of membrane, an expansion of the
integument, provided with nerves, blood-vessels, etc., which mainly lie
stretched between the digits 2 to 5. These digits themselves, which are
enormously elongated, act like the ribs of an umbrella, and when the wing
is folded they come into contact. Besides this part of the flying apparatus
there is a tract of membrane lying in front of the arm, which corresponds
to the wing membrane of the bird, but which in the Bats takes quite a
subordinate place. In the bird, on the other hand, there is a metapatagium,
which is the main part of the wing of the Bat. It seems just possible that
in _Archaeopteryx_ the metapatagium was more Bat-like. Furthermore, a
steering membrane, like that which fringes the tail in some Pterosaurians,
lies interfemorally in Bats, and includes the whole or a part of the tail.
The pollex takes no share in the wing, but projects, strongly armed with a
claw, from the upper margin.
The bones of this order of mammals are slender and marrowy; they are thus
light, and subserve the function of flight. A most remarkable feature among
the external characters of the Bat tribe is the extraordinary and often
highly complicated membranes which surround the nostrils. These are at
least often {523} more strongly developed in males than in females, and may
perhaps be partly relegated to the category of secondary sexual characters.
But it seems that they have also an important tactile function, and enable
the creatures to fly without touching bodies which intrude themselves upon
their way. The ears, too, are frequently very large, and it may be supposed
that the sense of hearing is correspondingly acute. In the common
Long-eared Bat of this country, the ears are not greatly inferior in length
to the head and body of the animal combined. The ears are of every variety
of shape, and offer characters which are valuable in the systematic
arrangement of the members of the order.
[Illustration]
FIG. 255.--Skeleton of Flying Fox. _Pteropus jubatus._ x 1/8. (After de
Blainville.)
In the skull of Bats there is very rarely a complete separation between the
orbital and temporal fossae; the lachrymal duct is outside the orbit. The
tympanics are annular, and in a rudimentary condition. The centra {524} of
the vertebrae tend to become ankylosed in old individuals; the caudals have
no processes, but are like those quite at the end of the series in
long-tailed animals. The sternum is keeled for the better attachment of the
pectoral muscles, the chief muscles of flight. The ribs, which are much
flattened, are occasionally ankylosed together by their margins. There is a
well-developed clavicle. In the carpus the scaphoid, lunar, and cuneiform
are all fused together. In the hind-limb the fibula is rarely fully
developed.
The Bats are divisible into two primary groups, which are those of the
Megachiroptera and the Microchiroptera.
SUB-ORDER 1. MEGACHIROPTERA.
[Illustration]
FIG. 256.--Skull of _Pteropus fuscus_. x 3/2. (After de Blainville.)
The PTEROPODIDAE are frugivorous Bats, usually of large size. The chief
distinguishing feature is the fact that the molars are not tubercular, but
marked with a longitudinal furrow, which is, however, concealed in the
genus _Pteralopex_ by cusps. The palate is continued back behind the
molars. The index finger has three phalanges, and is usually clawed. The
ears are oval, and the two edges are in contact at the base of the ear. The
tail, if present, has nothing to do with the interfemoral membrane. This
group is entirely Old World in range. The genus _Pteropus_ embraces the
creatures known as Flying Foxes. They are the largest forms in the
sub-order, sometimes having an expanse of wing of 5 feet (this is the case
with _P. edulis_). The muzzle is long, and the face therefore "foxy" in
appearance. {525} The inner margin of the nostrils projects, a preparation
for the tubular nostrils of _Harpyia_. The tail is absent. The premolars
are three and the molars two. The pyloric region of the stomach is extended
and twisted upon itself. Of this genus there are nearly sixty species,
extending from Madagascar to Queensland. Thirty species inhabit the
Australian, twenty the Oriental region. Madagascar has seven, and one
species just enters the Palaearctic. The occurrence of this genus in India
and in Madagascar is one of those facts which favour the view supported, on
these and other grounds, by Dr. Dobson and Dr. Blanford that a connexion
between India and Madagascar must once have existed; for these slow-flying
creatures could hardly be believed capable of traversing vast stretches of
ocean by their unaided efforts.[399]
[Illustration]
FIG. 257.--Flying Fox. _Pteropus poliocephalus._ x 1/3.
_Pteropus_ is represented in the Ethiopian region by the allied genus
_Epomophorus_. Of this there are perhaps a dozen species. The teeth are
reduced to two premolars in the upper jaw, {526} three remaining below;
while there is but one molar in each upper jaw, and two in each lower. Dr.
Dobson has studied the structure of the remarkable pharyngeal sacs which
exist in the neck of the male, and are capable of inflation.
_Pteralopex_ of the Solomon Islands has shorter ears than have many
_Pteropus_, otherwise its external characters are the same. As in _Pteropus
nicobaricus_, this genus has the orbits shut off by a bony ring, an
extremely rare phenomenon in Bats. The canines have two cusps. The
characters of the grinding teeth have already been mentioned. It is
uncertain whether the only species of this genus, _P. atrata_, is, or is
not, a vegetable feeder. _Harpyia_ has shortish ears and extraordinarily
prolonged and tubular nostrils. There is a hint of the accessory cusp to
the canines mentioned above in _Pteralopex_. The incisors are reduced to
one on each upper jaw, and none below. _Cynopterus_ has also often
bituberculate canines. It is an Oriental genus with several species.
_Nesonycteris_, with one species from the Solomon Islands, _N. woodfordi_,
has the dental formula I 2/1 C 1/1 Pm 3/3 M 2/3. The index finger has no
claw; the tail is absent. The premaxillae are separated anteriorly.
_Eonycteris_, with a single cave-dwelling species from Burmah, _E.
spelaea_, has also no claw upon the index; the tooth formula is fuller by
reason of the presence of an additional incisor below. The tongue is very
long and is armed with papillae. There is a short but distinct tail.
_Notopteris_, from New Guinea and the Fiji Islands, is distinguished from
the related genera by its long tail.
The remaining genera of Fruit Bats are _Boneia_, _Harpyionycteris_,
_Cephalotes_, _Callinycteris_, and _Macroglossus_, from the Oriental
region, and _Scotonycteris_, _Liponyx_, and _Megaloglossus_ from the
Ethiopian region; finally, there is the Australian _Melonycteris_.
SUB-ORDER 2. MICROCHIROPTERA.
The members of this sub-order are mostly insectivorous though occasionally
"frugivorous or sanguivorous" Bats. The molars are multicuspid with sharp
cusps. The palate is not continued back behind the last molar. The second
finger has but one phalanx, or {527} none; occasionally there are two. It
has no claw. The ear has its two sides separate from their point of origin
upon the head. The group is of Old-World distribution.
FAM. 1. RHINOLOPHIDAE.--The Bats of this family possess the leafy
outgrowths around the nostrils. The ears are large, but have no tragus. The
index finger has no phalanx at all. The premaxillary bones are quite
rudimentary, and are suspended from the nasal cartilages. In addition to
the pectoral mammae they have two teat-like processes situated abdominally.
The tail is long, and extends to the end of the interfemoral membrane.
The genus _Rhinolophus_ has a large nose leaf, and an antitragus to the
ear. The first toe has two joints, the remaining toes have three joints
each. The dentition is I 1/2 C 1/1 Pm 2/3 M 3/3. There are nearly thirty
species of the genus, which are restricted to the Old World. Two species
occur in this country, viz. _R. ferrum equinum_, the Great Horse-shoe Bat,
and the Lesser Horse-shoe Bat, _R. hipposiderus_. The name is of course
derived from the shape of the nose leaf.
The genus _Hipposiderus_ and some allied forms are placed away from
_Rhinolophus_ and its immediate allies in a sub-family _Hipposiderinae_.
The type genus _Hipposiderus_, or, as it ought apparently to be called,
_Phyllorhina_, is Old World in range, like all the other members of the
family.
The nose leaf is complicated, and there are only two phalanges in all the
toes; there is no antitragus to the ear. A curious feature in the osteology
of the genus, and indeed of the sub-family, is the fact that the
ileo-pectineal process is connected with the ilium by a bony bridge; this
arrangement is unique among mammals.
The genus _Anthops_, only known from the Solomon Islands, and represented
there by but a single species (_A. ornatus_), has an extraordinarily
complicated nose leaf. The tail, like that of the Oriental _Coelops_,
likewise represented by a single species (_C. frithii_), is rudimentary.
_Triaenops_, Ethiopian and Malagasy, has, like the Australian
_Rhinonycteris_, a well-developed tail. _Triaenops_ has also a
highly-complicated nose leaf.
FAM. 2. NYCTERIDAE.--This family is to be distinguished from the
Rhinolophidae by the fact that the ear has a small tragus, and by the small
and cartilaginous premaxillae. In addition to {528} these two characters it
may be added that the nose leaf is well developed, but is not so
complicated as in the last family. The type genus _Nycteris_ is Ethiopian
and Oriental, nine species being African, and only one, _N. javanica_,
being, as the specific name denotes, from the East. _Megaderma_ is to be
distinguished by the loss of the upper incisors. There is no tail, and the
ears are particularly large. They are carnivorous Bats, and _M. lyra_,
called the "Indian Vampire Bat," chiefly affects frogs as an article of
diet.
FAM. 3. VESPERTILIONIDAE.--This family has not the nose leaf of other
families. The apertures of the nostrils are simple, round, or crescentic
apertures. The ear has a tragus, and the tail is not produced to any great
degree behind the interfemoral membrane. There are two phalanges to the
index digit.
This family in numbers of species is vastly in excess of any other family
of Bats. The most recent estimate, that of P. L. and W. L. Sclater, allows
190. But the generic types are by no means so numerous as in the
Phyllostomatidae. This is a significant fact when we reflect upon the
geographical range of the two families. The Vespertilionidae range over the
whole earth, while the Phyllostomatidae are practically limited to the
South American continent, only just getting into the Nearctic region. They
inhabit, therefore, a more restricted area, and, in consequence of
competition, have specialised more freely than the widely-spread and
therefore not crowded Vespertilionidae.
The genus _Vesperugo_ is by far the largest genus of this family, embracing
no less than seventy species. The tail is shorter than the head and body
together; the ears are separate, and moderate or short in size; the tragus
is generally short and obtuse. The dentition is I 2, C 1, Pm 2 or 1, M 3.
It is a remarkable fact that this genus, unlike most Bats, produces two
young at a time. The genus is universal in range, and one species, the
Serotine Bat, known in this country, even ranges from the New World to the
Old; but with so small a creature the possibility of accidental
transportation by man must not be left out of sight. The British species
are--_V. serotinus_, the Serotine already mentioned; _V. discolor_, a
single example only of which has occurred, and may have been introduced;
_V. noctula_, the habits of which were described by Gilbert White; _V.
leisleri_; and the Pipistrelle, _V. pipistrellus_, which is the best-known
member of the genus in this country.
{529}
The genus _Vespertilio_ contains some forty-five species, and is world-wide
in range. It has one more premolar in the upper jaw than has _Vesperugo_.
There are no less than six British species, of which _V. murinus_ is the
largest species of Bat recorded from this country, but is not quite
certainly indigenous.
_Plecotus_ has very long ears. The dentition is I 2/3 C 1/1 Pm 2/3 M 3/3.
The tragus is very large. There are but two or possibly three species, of
which one is North American, and the other is the Long-eared Bat, _P.
auritus_, of this country, but ranging as far as India. The shrill voice,
inaudible to some ears, of this Bat has been heard _of_ by everybody.
_Synotus_ includes the British Barbastelle, _S. barbastellus_, as well as
an Eastern form. It differs from the last genus principally by the loss of
a lower premolar. The ears, too, are not so large. _Otonycteris_,
_Nyctophilus_, and _Antrozous_ are allied genera; the last is Californian,
the others Old-World forms.
_Kerivoula_ (or _Cerivoula_) has a long, pointed, narrow tragus. The tail
is as long as or longer than the head and body. The dentition is as in
_Vespertilio_; but the upper incisors are parallel instead of divergent as
in that genus. The brilliantly-coloured _K. picta_ is, on account of this
very fact, the best-known species. The name _Kerivoula_, a corruption of
the Cinghalese "Kehel vulha," signifies plantain bat. This Bat has been
described as looking, when disturbed in the daytime, more like a huge
butterfly than a Bat, which is naturally associated with sombre hues. Other
species occur in the Oriental, Australian, and Ethiopian regions.
_Miniopterus_ has a premolar less in the upper jaw; it has a long tail as
in the last genus. One species, _M. scheibersi_, has almost the widest
range of any Bat, it being found from South Europe to Africa, Asia,
Madagascar, and Australia.
_Natalus_ is an allied form from Tropical America and the West Indies. It
is chiefly to be separated from _Kerivoula_ by the short tragus to the ear.
_Thyroptera_ is also South American. It is distinguished by the curious
sucker-like discs upon the thumb and foot. These "resemble in miniature the
sucking cups of cuttle-fishes." The Madagascar genus, _Myxopoda_, with but
one species, has also an adhesive but horse-shoe-shaped pad upon the thumb
and foot.
_Scotophilus_ has shortish ears with a tapering tragus. The tail is shorter
than the head and body, and is nearly contained within {530} the
interfemoral membrane. The dentition is I 1/3 C 1/1 Pm 1/2 M 3/3, with
another upper incisor in the young. It is African, Asiatic, and Australian.
This genus appears to be connected with _Vesperugo_ by Mr. Dobson's
proposed genus, or sub-genus as it is generally held to be,
_Scotozous_.[400] The genus _Nycticejus_, founded for the inclusion of
_Scotozous dormeri_, an Indian species, should, according to Dr. Blanford,
replace on grounds of priority the name _Scotophilus_. But as this name
(_Nycticejus_) is one introduced by Rafinesque, whose work was so uncertain
and untrustworthy, it seems preferable to retain the better-known name of
_Scotophilus_, introduced by William Elford Leach.
The genus _Chalinolobus_[401] has short, broad ears with an expanded
tragus. A distinct fleshy lobule projects from the lower lip on either side
of the mouth. The tail is as long as the head and the body. The dental
formula is I 2/3 C 1/1 Pm 2/2 or 1/2 M 3/3. The genus occurs in Africa,
Australia, and New Zealand; but the African species, with diminished
premolars and pale coloration, have been distinguished as _Glauconycteris_.
FAM. 4. EMBALLONURIDAE.--The Bats belonging to this family have no nose
leaf. The tragus is present, but often very small. The ears in this family
are often united. There are two phalanges in the middle finger. The tail is
partly free, either perforating the interfemoral membrane and appearing
upon its upper surface, or prolonged beyond its end. The face is obliquely
truncated in front, the nostrils appearing beyond the lower lip.
_Emballonura_ is Australian, Oriental, and Mascarene in range. The ears
arise separately, and there is a fairly developed and narrow tragus. The
tail perforates the interfemoral membrane. The dental formula is I 2/3
C 1/1 Pm 2/2 M 3/3.
_Rhinopoma_ has the ears united; the incisors are reduced by one on each
side of each jaw, and the premolars are similarly reduced, but only in the
upper jaw.
_Noctilio_ is an American genus of two or three species, which has one pair
of markedly large upper incisors, which completely conceal the outer pair.
On these grounds this Bat was removed from its allies and placed by
Linnaeus among the Rodents, an instance of the disadvantage of the
artificial scheme of classification. The species named _N. leporinus_ has
been shown to feed upon fish. {531}
_Furia_, _Amorphochilus_, _Rhynchonycteris_, _Saccopteryx_, _Cormura_, and
_Diclidurus_ are other Neotropical genera of the same family.
The genus _Taphozous_[402] has a tail which perforates the interfemoral
membrane, appearing on its upper surface; it is capable of being withdrawn.
The premaxillaries are cartilaginous. The dentition is I 1/2 C 1/1 Pm 2/2
M 3/3. The upper incisors often disappear. Many species of the genus have a
gular sac, opening anteriorly between the jaws. This is better developed in
the males. The genus ranges from Africa through Asia to New Guinea and
Australia. There are some twelve species.
The genus _Molossus_[403] has short legs and well-developed fibulae. The
tail is thick and fleshy, and is prolonged far beyond the margin of the
interfemoral membrane. The ears are united together above the nose; the
tragus is minute. The dentition is I 1/1 or 1/2 C 1/1 Pm 1/2 or 2/2 M 3/3.
This genus, which is confined to the tropical and subtropical portions of
America, has long and narrow wings. The Bats can thus fly rapidly, twist
about with ease, and capture strongly-flying insects. There are a large
number of species.
_Nyctinomus_ is an allied genus, and also has many species. These range
through both hemispheres. The chief differences from _Molossus_ are that
the premaxillary bones are separate in front or united by cartilage, and
that the incisors may be three in the lower jaw.
FAM. 5. PHYLLOSTOMATIDAE.--The Bats of this family are extremely numerous
and almost entirely confined to South America. None of them occur outside
the New World. There are some thirty-five genera. The members of the family
are to be distinguished by the presence of the nose leaf, by the
well-developed premaxillae, and by the possession of three phalanges by the
middle finger. They are large, and the tragus of the ear is well developed.
_Vampyrus_ of South America contains the large species V. spectrum, which,
mainly on account as it seems of its "forbidding aspect," was supposed to
be a bloodsucker. This genus has two incisors on each side of the upper
jaw.
The genus _Glossophaga_ represents another type of structure in this
family. The tongue is long and extensile, and is much attenuated towards
the tip, where it is covered with strong and recurved papillae. This
structure was at one time thought to indicate a {532} bloodsucking habit;
but its use appears to be merely that of scooping out the soft insides of
fruits, upon which the Bat mainly lives. The incisors are only one on each
side of the upper jaw. The really bloodsucking Bats of this family belong
to the genera _Desmodus_ and _Diphylla_. The former is the Vampire, the
species being known as _Desmodus rufus_. These Bats have no tail; there is
no true molar tooth; the canines are large, and the single pair of upper
incisors quite caniniform, and very sharp and strong. These are the main
teeth for aggression. In accordance with its diet of blood, the Vampire has
a peculiarly modified intestine. The gullet is provided with a bore so
small that nothing but fluid food could pass down it; the stomach is
intestiniform in shape.
* * * * *
{533}
CHAPTER XVII
PRIMATES
ORDER XIII. PRIMATES.
The highest of mammals, the Primates,[404] may be thus differentiated from
other groups:--Completely hairy, generally arboreal mammals, with five
digits on fore- and hind-limbs, provided with flat nails (except in the
case of certain Lemurs and the Marmosets), the phalanges that bear these
being flattened at the extremity and expanded rather than diminished in
size. The fore-feet are grasping hands as a rule, and the hind-feet walking
as well as (generally) grasping organs, and the mode of progression is
plantigrade. The teats, except in _Chiromys_, are thoracic, and even
axillary in position. The skull is characterised by the fact that the
orbital and the temporal vacuities are, at least partly, separated by bone.
The clavicles are always present. The carpus has separate lunar and
scaphoid bones, and the centrale is often present. There is rarely an
entepicondylar foramen in the humerus, except in some archaic Lemurs. The
femur has no third trochanter. The stomach is usually simple, being
sacculated only in Semnopithecinae. The caecum is always present, and often
large.
This great group could be easily divided into two separate orders, the Apes
and the Lemurs, if it were not for certain fossil types. As will be seen
from the description of _Nesopithecus_ and of _Tarsius_, the actual hard
and fast lines between _all_ Apes and _all_ Lemurs are very few. On the
other hand, it is a little difficult to draw a hard and fast line between
the Primates as a whole--or at least between the Lemurine section--and the
Creodonta, a {534} group to which so many others appear to converge. It is
disputed, for example, whether the Chriacidae among extinct Lemurs are
rightly placed, or whether they should be referred to the Creodonta. The
number of primitive characters seen among the Primates, even in Man
himself, is remarkable. Of these the more important are the five digits of
both limbs and the plantigrade walk, the presence of clavicles and of a
centrale, and the absence of a third trochanter. All these features
distinguish the early Eutheria.
SUB-ORDER 1. LEMUROIDEA.[405]
The animals known as Lemurs, from their nocturnal and ghostly habits, are
on a lower level of organisation than the other division of the Primates.
Even the external form enables the members of the present sub-order to be
readily distinguished from the higher Anthropoidea. The head is more like
that of a Fox, with a sharp muzzle; it lacks the human expression of the
face of even the lower among the Apes. The long tail is never prehensile,
and there is never any trace of cheek pouches or of integumental
callosities, which are frequently so characteristic of the Apes. The Lemurs
agree with the remainder of the Primates in having pectoral mammae
(sometimes abdominal ones are present in addition, and in _Hapalemur_--in
the male at least--there is a mamma upon each shoulder), in having
opposable thumbs and toes, and in the flattened digits. The tail varies
from complete absence (in the _Loris_) to a great length and bushiness in
the Aye-aye. The pectoral limbs are always shorter than the hind-limbs; the
reverse is occasionally the case in the Anthropoidea. A curious contrast
between the two divisions of the Primates concerns the digits of the hands
and feet. In the Anthropoidea it is the hallux or pollex which is subject
to great variation. In the Lemurs, on the contrary, the thumb and great toe
are always well developed, but the second or the third digit constantly
shows some abnormality; thus the singular elongation of the third digit of
the hand in _Chiromys_ and the absence of the index in the _Potto_.[406] In
all Lemurs the {535} second toe is furnished with a sharp nail, unlike the
flattened nails of the other fingers and toes, and in _Tarsius_ the third
also is thus provided. As to osteology, the shape of the head, already
referred to, indicates some of the differences in the skull which mark off
the Lemurs from the Anthropoidea. The brain case is small relatively to the
face; the orbital and temporal fossae are in communication, though the
frontal and jugal bones are united behind the orbit. The two halves of the
lower jaw are not invariably ossified to form one piece, as is the case
with most Apes. The lachrymal foramen lies upon the face in front of the
orbit. The teeth are characteristic, not so much in their number (the
dental formula is usually I 2, C 1, Pm 3, M 3 = 36) as in the disposition
of the incisors. The incisors of the lower jaw and the canines project
forwards in a way only found in a few American Monkeys; as in the Apes
there are four incisors in each jaw, but, with the exception of the highly
aberrant _Chiromys_, there is a space in the upper jaw between the incisors
of the two sides. The canines of the lower jaw, moreover, are often
incisiform. There is a well-developed sublingua beneath the tongue (see p.
61). The stomach is perfectly simple; and the caecum, always present and
varying in length, never has a vermiform appendix. The gall-bladder is
always present. The brain differs from that of the Anthropoidea in that the
cerebellum is, as in the lower Mammalia, exposed. The convolutions upon the
cerebral hemispheres are not greatly developed, a circumstance, however,
which (see p. 77) may have more relation to the size of the animals than to
their mental development. Though the brain in its general outlines is not
like that of the other Primates, there are certain resemblances; the most
striking of these is perhaps the presence, though in rather a rudimentary
condition, of the "Simian fissure."
The Lemurine brain has been chiefly studied by Flower,[407] by
Milne-Edwards,[408] and by myself.[409] There are also a number of
scattered papers dealing with particular types, such as the memoirs of
Owen[410] and Oudemans,[411] upon the brain (and the general anatomy) of
_Chiromys_. Without going into great {536} detail it may be stated
generally that the anatomy of the brain of this group confirms the
classification which is adopted in this work.
A curious feature in the anatomy of the Lemurs, which they share with
animals so remote from them in the system as the Edentata, is the breaking
up of some of the arteries of the limbs to form retia mirabilia; nothing of
the kind is known among the other Primates.
Perhaps the most remarkable difference between the Lemurs and the
Anthropoidea, which are really in many respects more closely allied than
might be inferred from the above summary of differences, is in the
structure of the placenta. The Lemurs agree with the Ungulates in having a
non-deciduate placenta.
A curious feature confined to the sub-family Lemurinae was first discovered
by myself in _Hapalemur griseus_.[412] On the forearm (see Fig. 258) is an
area of hardened skin, which is raised into spine-like processes. Fully
developed, this organ is characteristic of the male, the area being marked
off in the female, but without the spiny outgrowths. On removing the skin a
gland about the size and shape of an almond is brought into view. In other
Lemurs there is no modified skin, but a small tuft of particularly long
hairs, which are also present in _Hapalemur_, and a small gland beneath the
skin. The gland of _Hapalemur_ may be comparable with a tract of hardened
skin in _Lemur catta_, which projects to a large extent and has been spoken
of as a "climbing organ."
An almost exactly similar tuft of spine-like outgrowths exists upon the
lower end of the ankle of _Galago garnetti_. The spines are black and bent,
just as they are in _Hapalemur_. There appears also to be a gland. This
structure is not universal in the genus _Galago_ any more than is the patch
of spines in the genus _Hapalemur_.
In addition to this gland and to the patch of spines which cover it, the
same Lemur as well as _Chirogaleus_ and certain species of _Lemur_ possess
to the inner side of it a bundle of long and stiff bristles associated with
unusually large sebaceous glands; these structures are, of course, not
homologous with the gland of the arm of _Hapalemur_, as they coexist in the
same {537} species. They are, moreover, not peculiar to the Lemurs, but
exist in the Squirrel, in the Domestic Cat, in the Leopard, in
_Bassaricyon_,[413] the Otter, various Marsupials, and doubtless in many
mammals which require a tactile organ, for these hairs are associated with
a large branch of the radial nerve.
[Illustration]
FIG. 258.--A, left arm of _Hapalemur griseus_ [male]. __a__, Teat; _b_,
spines on arm gland; _c_, tactile bristle. B, left foot of _Nycticebus
tardigradus_. 1 to 5, Pads upon sole of foot. (After Sutton, and Mivart and
Murie.[414])
The Lemurs have at the present time a most remarkable distribution. There
are altogether about fifty species, referable to seventeen genera.
Thirty-six species are confined to Madagascar {538} and to some small
neighbouring islands. The rest occur in the Ethiopian and in the Oriental
region. The rest of the world is at present totally without Lemurs, though,
as will be seen in the sequel, the order was more widely spread over the
globe in past times.
FAM. 1. LEMURIDAE.--This family can be usefully subdivided into four
sub-families.
SUB-FAM. 1. INDRISINAE.--This sub-family is limited to Madagascar, and has
been exhaustively treated of by M. Grandidier and Professor Milne-Edwards
in the _Histoire de Madagascar_. These Lemurs contrast with others by the
large size of the hind- as compared with the fore-limbs. The ears are
short. The tail varies in length. The thumb is but slightly opposable, and
the toes are webbed. Correlated with the first two of these characters,
these Lemurs when upon the ground progress by means of the hind-limbs,
holding their arms above their heads. The number of teeth is reduced, the
total being thirty. The formula[415] is I 2/2 C 1/0 Pm 2/2 M 3/3. The colon
or large intestine, as figured by Milne-Edwards, has a remarkable
watch-spring-like coil, highly suggestive of the Ruminants and of certain
Rodents. This, however, is only in _Propithecus_ and _Avahis_. The caecum
in this sub-family is specially large. The brain is characterised by the
comparatively slight development of the angular fissure in _Propithecus_
and _Avahis_; it is in them anterior in position. In _Indris_ it is more
[416]-shaped and larger as in _Lemur_. The parieto-occipital fissure is
fairly well developed, so too is the antero-temporal.
The genus _Indris_ has more pronounced external ears than have the two
other genera of the sub-family. The tail is rudimentary. The incisors of
the upper jaw are sub-equal and set close together, those of the lower jaw
have marked longitudinal ridges upon the outer surface, which suggests
_Galeopithecus_ (see p. 520). The molars are quadricuspidate. There is but
a single species, _I. brevicaudata_, which is of a black colour,
diversified with white upon the rump and the limbs. The term "Indri"[417]
means, as does "Aye-aye," "look." One of the native names for the {539}
animal, "Amboanala," signifies "dog of the forest," and is derived not only
from the woeful howls of the creature, but from the fact that in certain
parts of the island it is used as a dog to chase birds.
These howls are largely effected by means of a laryngeal pouch, which is
described as different from that of Apes; the mechanism must also differ
from that of _Megaladapis_, inasmuch as the lower jaw is not deep as in
that extinct Lemur. The Indri is the largest of Lemurs, measuring about two
feet in length. It is arboreal and social, travelling in large companies.
As is the case with the _Propithecus_, the natives of Madagascar hold the
Indri in awe and veneration. It is curious that the name Lemur or ghost is
peculiarly applicable to the Indri or Babakote in another sense from that
which led to its adoption by Linnaeus. The natives, in fact, believe that
men after death become Indris. Naturally, therefore, these Lemurs have
reaped the advantage of this superstition in almost perfect immunity from
destruction. Their "long-drawn-out, melancholy cries" are probably at the
root of much of the ghostly terrors which they inspire.
The genus _Avahis_[418] has but a single species, _A. laniger_, which is
the smallest of this sub-family. It is a foot long without the tail. The
Avahi has a long tail (15 inches in length) like _Propithecus_. The outer
incisors are larger than the inner, thus differentiating the genus from
_Propithecus_. The molars of the upper jaw are quadricuspidate, of the
lower jaw five cusped. This genus has only eleven pairs of ribs instead of
the twelve of _Indris_ and _Propithecus_. The Avahis, unlike the Sifakas
and Indrinas, lead a solitary life, or go about in pairs. They are,
moreover, completely nocturnal.
The genus _Propithecus_ is characterised by the fur being rather silky than
woolly, which latter is the kind of fur found in the two other genera of
the sub-family. They are also rather larger animals, the body reaching a
length of nearly 2 feet. The tail is long as in _Avahis_; the inner
incisors are larger than the outer. The "Sifakas," as these Lemurs are
termed, have a reputation for gentleness of character, but, as is the case
with other animals, the males fight for the possession of the females at
the breeding season. They are mainly vegetarian in habit, and travel in
large companies. There are at least three species, and {540} several
varieties are allowed. The colours of these Lemurs are bright, and
distributed so as to form contrasting bands; thus _P. coquereli_, a variety
of _P. verreauxi_, has a black face and a body mainly white, with splashes
of a rich maroon upon the limbs and upon the chest.
These Lemurs are diurnal, and are especially active in the early morning
and evening, sleeping, or at any rate remaining quiet, during the heat of
the day. Their fitness for an arboreal life is shown by the existence of a
parachute-like fold of skin between the arms and the body, which suggests a
commencement of the more complete parachute of Flying Foxes, etc. These
Lemurs are said to be reverenced and therefore shielded from injury by the
natives of Madagascar.
SUB-FAM. 2. LEMURINAE.--The "True Lemurs" are all inhabitants of Madagascar
and of the Comoro Islands. They have not such long hind-limbs as have the
members of the last sub-family, nor are the toes webbed. The tooth formula
differs from that of the Indrisinae in that there is one more premolar on
each side of the upper jaw, and often one more incisor in the lower jaw,
making thus a total of thirty-six teeth. Sometimes, however, the incisors
of the upper jaw are totally wanting.
The Hattock, genus _Mixocebus_, is a scarce creature, only known from a
single species, _M. caniceps_. As it is rare, nothing is known of its
habits. It has one pair of upper incisors. The creature is one foot and
half an inch long, exclusive of the tail, which is an inch longer than the
body.
Genus _Lepilemur_.--The Lemurs belonging to this genus, entirely confined
to Madagascar, as are all the Lemurinae, have received the perfectly
unnecessary and pseudo-vernacular name of "Sportive Lemurs"; an equally
inappropriate and not at all ingenious name of "Gentle Lemurs" being
bestowed upon the allied genus _Hapalemur_. In _Lepilemur_ there are seven
species, which are to be distinguished from _Mixocebus_ in having the tail
shorter than the body. There are no incisors in the upper jaw. The last
molar is tricuspidate in the upper jaw; that of the lower jaw has five
cusps. They are nocturnal creatures, and but little is known of their
habits. Previously to Dr. Forsyth Major's visit to Madagascar only two
species of the genus were known; he has added five others. The length of
the body is 14 inches, and that of the tail 10 inches, in _L. mustelinus_,
which is the largest species. {541}
The genus _Hapalemur_[419] has a shorter muzzle than _Lemur_, and shorter
ears. There are two pairs of mammae instead of only one; these are upon the
breast and abdomen. In the male there is a pair upon the shoulder. The
incisors are small, sub-equal, and placed one behind the other; the last
one is at the inside of the canines. The molars of the upper jaw and the
last premolar have only three well-marked cusps; in the lower jaw they have
four. The caecum is blunter and is not so long as in _Lemur_; it differs
from that of other Lemurinae in having only two supporting mesenteries,
which are both furnished with blood-vessels. As in _Lepilemur_ and the
Indrisinae the carpus has no os centrale.
The genus, which is confined to the island of Madagascar, has two species,
of which one, _H. simus_, is the larger and has a broader muzzle, and does
not possess the peculiar arm gland (Fig. 258) already described in _H.
griseus_. The former species is stated by Mr. Shaw to be chiefly a
grass-eater, and to dislike berries and fruits, which are usually so
popular with Lemurs. It is, however, believed by some that there is but one
species of _Hapalemur_. _H. griseus_ is 15 inches long, and has a tail of
the same length. Its native name is "Bokombouli." It is nocturnal, and is
especially addicted to bamboos, upon the shoots of which it feeds and among
which it lives. It is often exhibited in the Zoological Society's Gardens;
but the specimens seem to be always males. This Lemur is of a dark
iron-grey colour with a tinge of yellow, more marked in individuals which
have received the separate specific name of _H. olivaceus_.
The genus _Lemur_ is distinguished by the long tail, half as long as the
body at the least, by the elongated face, and by the Fox-like muzzle; the
teeth are present to the full number of the family, viz. thirty-six; the
incisors are small and equal in size, and are separated from each other and
from the canines by spaces. The molars of the upper jaw have five cusps,
but there are only four in the lower jaw.
This genus is entirely confined to Madagascar and the Comoro Islands, and
consists of several species, the exact number of which is doubtful. Wallace
in his _Geographical Distribution_ allows fifteen; Dr. Forbes only eight,
with a plentiful allowance of varieties. One of the best-known species is
_Lemur catta_, the {542} Ring-tailed Lemur, or the "Madagascar Cat" of
sailors. _Lemur macaco_ shows a remarkable sexual dimorphism, the male
being black, and the female--formerly described as a distinct species, _L.
leucomystax_--being reddish brown with white whiskers and ear tufts. This
led to a confusion with a totally distinct species, _L. rufipes_, of which
the male (regarded as distinct and called _L. nigerrimus_) is entirely
black. This latter identification is, however, considered by Dr. Forsyth
Major[420] to be not quite certain at present.
The young Lemur is at least sometimes carried by the mother across her
belly; its tail passes round her back and then round its own neck.
[Illustration]
FIG. 259.--Ruffed Lemur. _Lemur varius._ x 1/9.
The Lemurs of this genus agree with those of some other genera in the
loudness of their voice, which is constantly exercised. Some move about by
day and others by night. They are insectivorous and carnivorous as well as
vegetarian; and Mr. Lydekker suggests[421] that their abundance and
hardiness is to be traced to this fondness for a mixed diet. _Lemur catta_
seems to be the only member of the genus that is not arboreal. It lives
among rocks where but few trees, and those much stunted, occur. Many
species of _Lemur_ are always to be seen in the Zoological Society's
Gardens. Fourteen "species" have at one time or another been exhibited.
SUB-FAM. 3. GALAGININAE.--This sub-family is found on the continent of
Africa as well as in Madagascar; but the genera are {543} different in the
two districts. In Madagascar we have _Opolemur_, _Microcebus_, and
_Chirogale_; on the continent, _Galago_. The members of this sub-family
have markedly large ears, which are but little furry; the tail is long. A
very marked skeletal character distinguishes this sub-family from other
Lemuridae, and allies them to _Tarsius_, that is the lengthening of the
calcaneum and naviculare in the ankle. The dental formula is as in _Lemur_.
The supporting bands of the caecum are in this sub-family as in the genus
_Lemur_. There are but two folds, of which one is median and non-vascular;
the lateral fold bears a blood-vessel, and is joined by the median frenum.
The brain is but little known. The only figure of the brain of _Galago_ is
one by myself. There are four mammae, two on the breast and two upon the
abdomen.
The genus _Galago_ comprises at any rate six distinct species. They are all
African, and range right across the continent from Abyssinia as far south
as Natal, and to Senegambia in the west. The incisors of the upper jaw are
small and equal; there is a gap between the canine and the first premolar.
The molars and the last premolar have four cusps; the last molar of the
lower jaw has an additional fifth cusp as in _Macacus_, etc. The Galagos
are chiefly nocturnal, and are more or less omnivorous. Owing to their long
hind-legs these animals when they leave the trees advance upon the ground
by hops like a Kangaroo. _Galago senegalensis_ makes a nest in the fork of
two branches, where it sleeps during the day. The Great Galago (_G.
crassicaudatus_) is named by the Portuguese "Rat of the Cocoa-nut Palm."
Sir John Kirk, after whom a variety of this species is called, relates that
it is incapable of resisting the fascinations of palm wine, upon which it
will readily intoxicate itself, and as a consequence brave probable
captivity. I have referred above (p. 536) to the patch of spines upon the
tarsus of _G. garnetti_.
The genus _Chirogale_ is entirely confined to Madagascar. It is to be
distinguished from _Galago_ by the fact that the inner incisors are larger
than the outer. There are five species of the genus known: four previously
to Dr. Forsyth Major's recent visit to Madagascar, and a fifth brought back
by him.[422] In connexion with this genus the naturalist just mentioned has
observed that all the Lemurs of Madagascar, including the aberrant {544}
_Chiromys_, differ from the African forms by the fact that the tympanic
ring "is completely enclosed by the bulla ossea, but without osseous
connexion with the same." This character he thinks so important as to
justify the inclusion of all the Mascarene forms in one group as opposed to
another group consisting of the continental Lemurs. In this event
_Chirogale_ will have to be separated from its close association with
_Galago_. For the present, however, it is left in the more generally
accepted position.
[Illustration]
FIG. 260.--Smith's Dwarf Lemur. _Microcebus smithii._ x 3/4.
[Illustration]
FIG. 261.--Mouse Lemur. _Chirogale coquereli._ x 1/2.
_Microcebus_ contains the most minute among the Lemurs. _M. smithii_ has a
body only 5 inches long, the tail being another 6 inches. It occurs in
Madagascar, and includes five species.
_Opolemur_, the Fat-tailed Lemur, was so called on account of a {545}
deposit of fat formed chiefly at the root of the tail, and intended to tide
over the time of the creature's hibernation. But, as a matter of fact, this
peculiarity also exists in _Chirogale_. Of _Opolemur_ but two species are
known, and of one of these, named after Mr. Thomas of the British Museum,
only three examples are in existence in museums, that is to say in one
museum--our own at South Kensington. Many of these dwarf Lemurs are
exceedingly rare. In this genus and in the last two the palate has a pair
of posterior fenestrae, of which there are also traces in other Lemurs, but
which are particularly large in _Microcebus_. This is, of course, a
well-known character of the Marsupials, and also, which is more important
in the present connexion, of certain Insectivores.
SUB-FAM. 4. LORISINAE.--This sub-family is the only one with a wide
distribution, and it contains, with the exception of _Tarsius_, the only
Asiatic members of the group. Correlated with its wide distribution there
is more divergence in anatomical characters than is the case with the other
sub-families of the Lemuridae. In external features all the three genera of
this sub-family agree in their small size, their short or entirely
deficient tail, large staring eyes, and the rudimentary character, or
absence, of the index finger, which is never provided with a nail; in all
of them the thumb diverges widely from the other fingers, and the great toe
is so divergent as to be directed backwards. In the brain there is one
character common to all three genera, and that is the small length of the
angular fissure. The caecum, which is long, is supported by three folds, of
which the median is anangious, and is sometimes attached to the longer of
the two lateral folds, which are vascular. The members of this sub-family
have more dorsal vertebrae than are found in other Lemurs; the range is
from fourteen in _Loris_, to sixteen in _Nycticebus_.
The genus _Nycticebus_ contains only a single species, _N. tardigradus_,
though four other names have been given to supposed varieties. Moreover,
the genus itself has been named _Stenops_, as also the next genus _Loris_.
The body of this animal is stouter than that of the next to be described.
Professor Mivart has pointed out that, though Asiatic like the Loris, it
presents more resemblances to the African Potto. The index finger is small;
the inner of the two incisors is smaller than the outer, but both of one
side are close together. They may be reduced to one on each side of the
upper jaw. {546}
[Illustration]
FIG. 262.--Slow Loris. _Nycticebus tardigradus._ x 1/3.
The animal has a wide distribution in the East, occurring in Assam and
Burmah, the Malay Peninsula, Siam, and Cochin-China, Sumatra, Java, Borneo,
and the Philippines. Its vernacular names signify "Bashful Cat" and
"Bashful Monkey" in allusion to its nocturnal and shy habits. It lives
among trees, which it does not voluntarily leave. Its movements are
deliberate, as its popular name, Slow Loris, implies; but it makes up for
this by a vigorous tenacity of grasp. The animals "make a curious
chattering when angry, and when pleased at night they utter a short though
tuneful whistle of one unvaried note, which is thought by Chinese sailors
to presage wind." Much superstition has collected round this harmless
though rather weird-looking creature. Its influence over human beings is as
active when it is dead as when it is alive. "Thus," writes Mr. Stanley
Flower,[423] "a Malay may commit a crime he did not premeditate, and then
find that an enemy had buried a particular part of a loris under his
threshold, which had, unknown to him, compelled him to act to his own
disadvantage." The life of the Loris, adds Mr. Flower, {547} "is not a
happy one, for it is continually seeing ghosts; and that is why it hides
its face in its hands!"
The genus _Perodicticus_ contains two quite recognisable species, known
respectively as the Angwantibo and Bosman's Potto. The former has been
regarded as referable to a distinct genus, _Arctocebus_. A curious internal
character of the Potto which is visible, or at least can be felt,
externally, is the long neural processes of the cervical vertebrae, which
project beyond the level of the skin. The index finger is rudimentary and
so is the tail, being only just visible (about an inch in length) in the
Potto. The colour of both genera is a reddish grey, redder in the Potto.
The incisors are equal and minute. Both species are confined in their range
to West Africa, and are arboreal like the other members of the sub-family.
The Potto seems to share the leisurely mode of progression of its Asiatic
relatives, if Bosman, its original describer, is to be trusted. He says:
"By the negroes called Potto, but known to us by the name of Sluggard,
doubtless from its lazy, sluggish nature; a whole day being little enough
for it to advance ten steps forward." The same writer did not at all
appreciate his addition to zoological knowledge, for he remarked that the
Potto "hath nothing very particular but his odious ugliness." The
Angwantibo is rare and but little known. Our knowledge of its anatomy is
derived from a paper by Huxley.[424] It is an animal measuring about 10-1/2
inches in total length to the end of the tail, which is only a quarter of
an inch long. The hands and feet are smaller than those of _Perodicticus_.
The index finger is rudimentary and has but two phalanges, and it has no
trace of a nail. In this it agrees with the Potto, but "the spinous
processes of the cervical vertebrae do not project in the manner described
by van der Hoeven in the Potto, though they can be readily felt through the
skin." The dental formula of this genus as of the last is I 2/2 C 1/1
Pm 3/3 M 3/3. The last lower molar has a fifth cusp, which is wanting in
the Potto. The last upper molar is tricuspid. It is bicuspid in the Potto.
It seems impossible to avoid agreeing with Professor Huxley that the
Angwantibo is entitled to generic separation.
The genus _Loris_ also contains but a single species, _L. gracilis_, and
is, as its name denotes, an animal of more slender build than the Slow
Loris. Its eyes are very large, and the limbs excessively {548} slender.
The index finger is much as in _Nycticebus_. The colour, too, is not widely
different, being of a yellowish grey, but it lacks the dorsal stripe which
distinguishes its relative. The incisor teeth are equal and very small. The
last upper molar has four cusps instead of the three of _Nycticebus_. This
Lemur is confined to Southern India and Ceylon, and has much the same
habits as the last. But it is rather more active, and can capture small
birds when sleeping upon the trees; its diet, however, is mixed, and is
vegetarian as well as animal.
A mysterious Lemur, which we conveniently place as a kind of appendix to
the present family on account of its locality, has been shortly described
by Nachtrieb from the Philippines. The tail is rudimentary; there are two
upper incisors, but as many as six lower. It is doubtful what the beast
really is.
[Illustration]
FIG. 263.--Aye-aye. _Chiromys madagascariensis._ x 1/10.
FAM. 2. CHIROMYIDAE.--This family contains but a single genus and species,
the Aye-aye, _Chiromys madagascariensis_, whose characters therefore are
for the present those of the family as well as of the genus and species.
The external features of this extraordinary animal will be gathered from an
inspection of Fig. 263, from which it will be seen that the earlier name of
_Sciurus_ given to the creature was not by any means a misnomer. The
Squirrel-like appearance is due, of course, chiefly to the strong and long
incisor teeth. As to the external characters, which are of systematic
importance, {549} attention may be called to the long and bushy tail, to
the greater length of the hind-limbs, to the abdominal teats (one pair) in
the female, and above all to the singular third digit of the hand, which is
thin and elongated. The thumb is, as in other Lemurs, opposable, and has a
flat nail; the remaining digits have claws, as have also the toes with the
exception of the great toe, which has a flat nail like the thumb.
The anatomy of this animal has occupied the attention of a considerable
number of observers, dating from Sir R. Owen, who was the first to give a
connected account of its entire organisation. The most recent paper of
importance is by Dr. Oudemans.[425] The teeth are very unlike those of
other Lemurs. The most remarkable divergence is in the incisors, which are
present to the number of but a single pair in each jaw, and are shaped like
those of the Rodentia, and in the same way as in that group grow from
persistent pulps. There are likewise, as in the Rodents, no canines. There
are two premolars in the upper jaw (none in the lower) and altogether
twelve molars, so that there is a total of eighteen teeth. The intestine
has a moderately long caecum. The brain has been most fully described by
Oudemans, who had fresh material to work with, the brain described by Owen
having been extracted from a spirit-preserved carcase. The angular fissure
is well developed, as in Lemur and the Indri; but it does not join the
infero-frontal. The antero-temporal fissure is also well developed.
"The name of Aye-aye," wrote Sonnerat, the discoverer of the animal, "which
I have retained for it, is a cry of surprise of the inhabitants of
Madagascar." It is, however, usually said that the animal itself makes a
sound which may be written in the same way (or with an initial H). It is an
arboreal and nocturnal animal, which accounts for its excessive rarity at
one time. In one of his many eloquent essays upon natural history the late
Mr. P. H. Gosse adduced the Aye-aye as an example of a creature on the
verge of extinction. It is, however, now more frequently met with, though
the superstition of the natives renders its capture a matter of some
difficulty. There is a specimen at the moment of writing in the Zoological
Society's Gardens. There has been some discussion as to the use of the
slender middle finger: it is stated that it can thrust it into the {550}
borings of the larva of a certain beetle of which the Lemur is particularly
fond, and can extract the insect, or at any rate discover its position,
when it may be extracted by the powerful chisel-shaped teeth. The
partiality of the Aye-aye for animal food of any kind including insects has
been both reaffirmed and denied; and Mr. Bartlett has seen the creature use
its slender finger for combing out its hair, and for other purposes of the
"toilet." Dr. Oudemans has figured in his paper an apple which has been
largely eaten by the _Chiromys_; the fleshy pulp has been entirely
excavated, leaving only the core and the skin, which are untouched. The
Rev. Mr. Baron is one of the latest writers upon the ways of life of
_Chiromys_.[426] He states that it inhabits the most dense parts of the
forests. It has the habit of prowling about in pairs, and the female
produces but a single young one at a birth. A nest, which is about 2 feet
across, is made of twigs in lofty branches. This is occupied during the
day, and entered by a hole in the side. With regard to the superstitious
veneration in which the animal is held, it is said that if a person sleeps
in the forest the Aye-aye will bring him a pillow. "If a pillow for the
head, the person will become rich; if for the feet, he will shortly succumb
to the creature's fatal power, or at least will become bewitched." But a
counter-charm may be obtained. It is said that the reverence for this beast
leads the natives to bury carefully a specimen found dead.
FAM. 3. TARSIIDAE.--This family also consists of but a single genus,
_Tarsius_, to which it is the general opinion that but a single species
belongs; there are, however, at least four different specific names on
record. The general aspect of the animal is not unlike that of a Galago,
with which it also agrees in the elongation of the ankle; but the
elongation is more pronounced in the present genus. The ears are large, and
the eyes are extraordinarily developed. The fingers and toes terminate in
large expanded discs, and are furnished with flattened nails except on the
second and third toes, which have claws. The tail is longer than the body
and is tufted at the end. The skull is more like that of the Anthropoidea
than is the skull of any other Lemur. The resemblance is by reason of the
almost complete separation of the orbit and the temporal fossa by bone;
{551} there is, however, a gap left to mark the Lemurine characters of the
animal. The placenta, too, has been compared to that of the Apes. The
dental formula is that of the genus _Lemur_, save for the absence of an
incisor on each side of the lower jaw; the number of teeth is therefore
thirty-four. The incisors of the lower jaw are upright, and not procumbent
as in other Lemurs. The caecum is of moderate length. The brain is almost
smooth, but there is a Sylvian fissure and an antero-temporal, which latter
does not reach the lower margin of the brain, but divides the middle part
of the temporal lobe. The name Tarsier, as may be inferred, was originally
given to this creature by Buffon on account of the abnormal ankle, and it
was compared by him with the Jerboa, like which animal the Tarsier leaps
when it descends to the ground. The genus is Malayan, but its range extends
to the Philippines and to Celebes and Borneo. The Tarsiers are nocturnal
and particularly arboreal; they live in pairs, in holes in tree stems, and
are mainly insectivorous in their food. One, rarely two young are produced
at a birth. Contrary to what is found in many Lemurs, the Tarsier is a
silent creature, and at most emits a "sharp, shrill call." Dr. Charles
Hose, who has studied this creature, has noticed that the mother often
carries her young one about in her mouth like a Cat. Like so many Lemurs
this animal is held in superstitious dread, which no doubt is the result of
its most weird appearance.[427]
[Illustration]
FIG. 264.--Right pes of _Tarsius spectrum_. (Nat. size.) _a_, Astragalus;
_c_, calcaneum; _c_^1, internal cuneiform; _c_^2, middle cuneiform; _c_^3,
external cuneiform; _cb_, cuboid; _n_, navicular; _I-V_, the digits. (From
Flower's _Osteology_.)
FOSSIL LEMURS.--The Lemuroids are a very ancient race; they extend back to
the very earliest strata of the Eocene, the Torrejon and Puerco beds,
which, as already said, are thought to be more referable to the Cretaceous
than to the Tertiary epoch. {552} One of these early forms is referred to
the genus _Mixodectes_, a genus which has been placed, though with a query,
in the order Rodentia. It appears, however, to be a Lemuroid, and is of
American range. The incisor teeth have been held to argue that it lies on
the direct track of _Chiromys_; but other features, more especially the
form of the astragalus, have been used to argue the justice of the
inclusion of this type within the order Rodentia. Allied, as it is
supposed, to this form is _Indrodon_, also of the lowest Eocene deposits of
the United States. _Indrodon malaris_ is known from fragments of nearly all
parts of the skeleton. They indicate the existence of a creature of about
one-half the size of _Lemur varius_. It had slender limbs and a long and
powerful tail. The humerus, as in so many archaic beasts, has an
entepicondylar foramen. The femur has three trochanters, and the fibula
articulates with the astragalus. It is not always easy to distinguish these
primitive mammals from each other, so that the minutest of characters have
to be called in to our assistance. One of the contemporaneous groups with
which these early Lemurs might be confused is that of the Condylarthra; it
is important, therefore, to note that in _Indrodon_ the calcaneo-cuboidal
articulation is nearly flat, and not bent as it is in the former group. The
teeth are of the tritubercular pattern. The incisors are not known, but the
molars and premolars are each three. To the same family, which has been
termed ANAPTOMORPHIDAE, is referred the genus _Anaptomorphus_, which has
been specially compared to _Tarsius_. This small animal has a Lemurine face
with huge orbits. It has a premolar less than _Indrodon_. It has been
ascertained that _A. homunculus_ had an external lachrymal foramen.[428]
Another family, that of the CHRIACIDAE, appear to hover on the border line
of Lemurs and Creodonts, having been referred to both by various
palaeontologists. Professor Scott suggests their Lemurine or at least
Primate relationships, while Cope urged their Creodont affinities. A
difficulty raised by Scott was, that in _Chriacus_ the premolars of the
lower jaw were spaced. But it appears that this is not fatal to their
inclusion in the Primates, since _Tomitherium_, an "undoubted Primate,"
shows the same feature. If _Chriacus_ is a Lemur it is an earlier type than
those {553} which have been considered; for it has the typical Eutherian
dentition of four premolars and three molars. These teeth, especially the
superior molars, are particularly compared to the corresponding teeth of
_Lemur_ and _Galago_. Of this and the allied genus, _Protochriacus_,
several species are known.
_Adapis_, a representative of another family, is one of the best known of
ancient Lemuroids. It has the typical mammalian dentition of forty-four
teeth in a close series without diastemata. The orbits are completely
separated from the temporal cavity, the eyes looking forwards. The canines
are large and caniniform. The skull is deeply ridged behind with the usual
sagittal crest. This genus is European, and corresponds to the already
mentioned American Eocene _Tomitherium_, perhaps belonging to the same
family.
_Nesopithecus_ is an extinct genus from Madagascar, lately described by Dr.
Forsyth Major.[429] There are two species, _N. roberti_ and _N. australis_.
The dental formula is I 2, C 1, Pm 3, M 3, for the upper jaw, the lower jaw
having but a single pair of incisors. The lachrymal foramen is just inside,
or on the edge, of the orbit, so that one distinctive Lemurine character is
lost. The genus is also Ape-like in the form of the canines and incisors,
these having been especially compared by Dr. Forsyth Major with those of
the Cercopithecidae. The molars, too, agree with those of the same family.
There is, however, one important feature in which _Nesopithecus_ resembles
not only the Lemurs as opposed to the Apes, but the Malagasy Lemurs. As
already mentioned (p. 544), Dr. Major has shown that in the Malagasy
Lemurs, even including the aberrant _Chiromys_, and in the Tertiary and
European _Adapis_, the bulla tympani is not produced by an ossified
extension of the annulus tympanicus, but from the adjacent periotic bone,
the annulus remaining separate and lying within the fully-formed bulla.
This feature shows conclusively that _Adapis_ is a Lemur, and that
_Nesopithecus_, originally supposed to be a Monkey, cannot be removed from
the Lemuroidea, many though its likenesses to the higher Primates
undoubtedly are. However, this feature, combined with the fact that the
orbital and temporal cavities are in communication, shows the Lemuroid
position of _Nesopithecus_, though it is quite conceivable that it is on
the way to become an Ape. {554}
A family, MEGALADAPIDIDAE, has been quite lately founded by Dr. Forsyth
Major[430] to include the remains of a gigantic extinct Lemur from
Madagascar, which when alive, so far as we can judge from the skull, must
have been three or four times the size of the Common Cat. The name
_Megaladapis madagascariensis_ was given to the fossil on account of
certain resemblances to the also extinct _Adapis_. It differs from other
Lemurs in a number of characters which jointly warrant its inclusion in a
distinct family. The small size of the orbits suggest a diurnal life; the
deep mandibles, which, unlike what is found in other Lemurs, are completely
blended at the suture, point to the existence of a howling apparatus, as in
_Mycetes_. The low brain-case is a character which is found in so many
extinct Mammalia belonging to many different orders that it weighs neither
one way nor the other in considering the systematic position of the animal.
The shape of the molars, which are three in each half of each jaw as in
other Lemurs, is, according to the discoverer, like that of the genus
_Lepilemur_. The incisors and the canines are not known. Of a still larger
form, _M. insignis_, the molar teeth are known.[431]
SUB-ORDER 2. ANTHROPOIDEA.
The Apes differ from the Lemurs in that the teats are always restricted to
the thoracic region; the orbit, though surrounded by bone as in the Lemurs
(and in _Tupaia_, a very Lemur-like Insectivore), does not open freely
behind into the temporal fossa as in Lemurs (except _Tarsius_). The
lachrymal opening is inside the orbit instead of outside; the cerebral
hemispheres are more highly developed, and conceal, or nearly conceal, the
cerebellum; the upper incisors are in close contact; a few other points are
mentioned under the description of the characters of the Lemurs. There are
altogether about 212 species of Monkeys and Apes. They are tropical and
subtropical in range, and, with but few exceptions, are impatient of cold.
The Monkeys are primarily divisible into two great divisions, which have
been termed, on account of the characters of the nose, {555} the
Catarrhines and Platyrrhines. In the former the nostrils look downward and
are close together; in the latter they are separated by a broad
cartilaginous septum, and the apertures are directed outwards. But numerous
other points of difference separate these two groups of the Monkey tribe.
The Catarrhines often have those remarkable ischial callosities, patches of
hard skin brightly coloured; the tail may be totally wanting as a distinct
organ, as is the case, for instance, with the Anthropoid Apes; there are
often cheek pouches, so that, as Mr. Lydekker has remarked, if a Monkey be
observed to stow nuts away in its cheeks for future reference, we may be
certain that its home is in the Old World, for the Catarrhines are
exclusively denizens of the Old World, while the Platyrrhines are as
exclusively New World in range. Again, those of the Catarrhines which do
possess a long tail, such as the members of the genus _Cercocebus_, never
show the least sign of prehensility in that tail. The teeth of the
Catarrhines are invariably thirty-two in number, the formula being I 2/2
C 1/1 Pm 2/2 M 3/3 = 32.
In the Old-World Apes there is a bony external auditory meatus, which is
wanting (as a bony structure) in the Platyrrhines. The late Mr. W. A.
Forbes pointed out that in most of the New-World forms the parietals and
the malars come into contact; in the Monkeys of the Old World they are
hindered from coming into contact by the frontals and the alisphenoids. The
Platyrrhines may have the same number of teeth; this is the case with the
Marmosets, but in them there are three premolars and two molars; in the
remaining New-World Monkeys there are thirty-six teeth, but of these three
are premolars and three molars.
Not only are these two groups of the Primates absolutely distinct at the
present day, but they have been, so far as we know, for a very long time,
since no fossil remains of Monkeys at all intermediate have been so far
discovered. This has led to the suggestion that the Monkeys are what is
termed diphyletic, _i.e._ that they have originated from two separate
stocks of ancestors. It is hard, however, to understand on this view the
very great similarities which underlie the divergences that have just been
mentioned. But, on the other hand, it is equally hard to understand how it
is that, having been separated from each other for so long a period, they
have not diverged further in {556} structure than they have. The
Platyrrhines seem to stand at the base of the series. This is another
example of the existence of archaic creatures in South America.
GROUP I. _PLATYRRHINA._
FAM. 1. HAPALIDAE.--We may begin the account of the Platyrrhine Monkeys
with the Hapalidae or Marmosets; for this family is structurally lower than
the rest. They have thirty-two teeth, arranged as in the following formula:
I 2/2 C 1/1 Pm 3/3 M 2/2 = 32. The molars have three main tubercles, and
not four as in the higher forms. The digits are for the most part clawed,
not nailed, as in the higher types; the great toe alone bears a flat nail.
The tail, too, is ringed, a condition which is characteristic of many of
the lower groups of mammals, but not of the higher Apes. The cerebral
hemispheres are smooth, but this is a matter rather connected with their
small size than with low zoological position. The tails of the Marmosets,
unlike those of so many other American Monkeys, are not prehensile though
they are long.
The genus _Hapale_ is broadly distinguished from the other genus, _Midas_,
by the fact that the lower incisors slant forwards as in the Lemurs. They
are small, soft-furred, long-tailed Monkeys, familiar to every one. There
are some seven species, which are entirely restricted in range to Brazil,
Bolivia, and Colombia, one species only, _H. pygmaea_, extending northward
into Mexico.
Of Tamarins, genus _Midas_, there are rather more species--about fourteen.
They are South and Central American in distribution. Since both these
genera are arboreal in habit, it is extraordinary that they have not the
prehensile tails of their American allies. As, however, the late Mr. Bates
observed an individual of the species _M. nigricollis_ fall head-foremost
from a height of at least 50 feet, alight on its feet, and run off as if
nothing in particular had occurred, it is evident that no extra prehensile
powers are absolutely necessary. Some of the Tamarins have a long mane;
this is well seen in _M. rosalia_, or rather in _M. leoninus_, which, if
not identical with it, is at least very closely allied to it. The name is
obviously derived from the character {557} referred to, and the Monkey,
originally described by the traveller von Humboldt, is said to have "the
appearance of a diminutive lion." _M. bicolor_ is an example of the species
with no mane, but with a patch of white round the mouth, looking like "a
ball of snow-white cotton" held in the teeth.
FAM. 2. CEBIDAE.--The remaining American Monkeys are comprised in the
family Cebidae. This is to be distinguished from the last by the fact that
there is an additional molar, thus making thirty-six teeth in all. The
tail, sometimes very short, is more generally long and highly prehensile,
being nude at the extremity, which part is therefore especially prehensile;
this state of affairs is often to be seen in animals with prehensile tails.
The Cebidae, though for the most part larger than the Marmosets, never
approach in size the Old-World Apes.
Typical of the family is the genus _Cebus_, including the "Capuchin"
Monkeys, and consisting of nearly twenty species; the tail, though
prehensile, is covered with hair to the tip, a fact which is indicative of
a less perfect prehensility than is exhibited in some Monkeys with a naked
under surface to the tip of the tail. The thumb is well developed. The
genus ranges from Costa Rica to Paraguay. The commonest Monkey which
accompanies the street organs of this country is a _Cebus_. It is a popular
delusion that these and other monkeys are purely vegetable-feeding animals.
_Cebus_ is in fact particularly fond of caterpillars, as are also the
Marmosets.
Allied to _Cebus_ is _Lagothrix_, the Woolly Monkey, of which _L.
humboldti_ is the best-known species, there being indeed but one other. It
is a larger and heavier animal than any species of _Cebus_; and the
Hare-like woolliness of the fur suggested its scientific name to its
original describer, von Humboldt. It has a perfectly prehensile tail, naked
at the tip. The thumb and great toe are well developed. These are purely
fruit-eating Monkeys, and are known as "Barrigudos" by the Portuguese of
the Amazon country on account of their prominent belly, due apparently to
the immense amount of fruit consumed. They are, or were, much eaten by
natives.
_Brachyteles_ is a little-known genus, connecting the last with the next
genus. The under fur is woolly; the thumb is small or absent. The tail is
naked below.
The Spider monkeys, _Ateles_ or Coaitas, have been described as {558} the
most typically arboreal of American monkeys. The use of the prehensile tail
can frequently be studied in living examples in the Zoological Society's
Gardens. With this "fifth hand" the Monkey feels for a place to grasp, and
securely twists its tail round, moving it with the greatest ease from point
to point. When the tail is being thus used it is carried erect over the
head. The fact that this genus possesses no functional thumb is thought to
be associated with the extreme perfection of its adaptability to an
exclusively arboreal life. The hand without a thumb can act as an equally
efficient hook for suspending the body; and what is useless in nature tends
to disappear. These Monkeys have a wide range, extending from Mexico in the
north to Uruguay in the south. There are ten species. The flesh of many
Monkeys is eaten not only by natives but by Europeans; but the Spider
Monkeys are said to furnish the most sapid food of all.
[Illustration]
FIG. 265.--Spider Monkey. _Ateles ater._ x 1/12.
The Howling Monkeys, genus _Mycetes_, have also received the appropriate
generic names of _Alouatta_ and _Stentor_. The former of these two names,
indeed, is that which should properly be applied to the genus. But
_Mycetes_ is perhaps better known. The "howling" is produced by saccular
diverticula of the larynx, larger than those of other American Monkeys,
such as _Ateles_, where, however, they are also developed. The hyoid bones,
too, {559} are enormously enlarged and cavernous, while the jaw--in order
to accommodate and protect these various structures--is unusually large and
deep. The Howlers are furnished with a fully prehensile tail. The thumb is
present. They are described as being the most hideous in aspect of the
American Monkeys, and of the lowest intelligence, with which latter
characteristic is associated a less convoluted brain than in _Ateles_, for
example. The noise produced by these Monkeys is audible for miles, and is
said not to be due to emulation, _i.e._ not to be comparable to singing or
talking, but to serve to intimidate their enemies. The story told of these
and other Monkeys with prehensile tails, that they cross rivers by means of
a bridge of intertwined Monkeys, is apparently devoid of truth. There are
six species, which are Central and South American in range.
The Squirrel Monkeys, genus _Chrysothrix_, are small creatures with a long
head, the occiput projecting. Their tail, though long, has no naked area at
the extremity and is non-prehensile. It is a remarkable fact that the
proportions of the cranium as compared with the face are greater, not only
than in other Monkeys, but than in Man himself. The thumb is short, but not
so short as in the Spider Monkeys. The cerebral hemispheres are very
smooth; but, as already remarked, this is a matter of size, and not of low
position in the series. It may appear at first sight that this statement
contradicts the one made concerning the Howlers. But the latter are large
Monkeys, and therefore ought, so to speak, to have a more complex brain;
but they have not. Like so many of the American Monkeys, the Squirrel
Monkeys are gregarious, and, in spite of their tails, arboreal. They are
largely insect-feeders, and also catch small birds and devour eggs. There
are four species, of which _C. sciurea_ is the commonest, and is constantly
an inmate of the Zoological Society's Gardens. Humboldt asserted of it that
when vexed its eyes filled with tears; but Darwin did not succeed in seeing
this very human expression of an emotion.
_Callithrix_ is a genus not far removed from the last, and, like it, occurs
both in Central and in South America. It is chiefly to be distinguished
from _Chrysothrix_ by the non-extension backwards of the head, and by the
more furry character of the tail. The lower jaw is rather deep, as in the
Howlers; but there is not, or there has not been discovered, a howling
apparatus like {560} that of _Mycetes_. Nevertheless Professor Weldon[432]
has found in a female of _C. gigot_ a patch of ossification on the thyroid
cartilage of the larynx which may be an indication of something more in the
male. There are eleven species.
_Nyctipithecus_, the Doroucouli Monkeys, is a genus of somewhat Lemurine
appearance, caused by their large eyes. But they reminded Bates of an Owl
or a Tiger-cat! They have a long, but not prehensile tail. As in the
Marmosets, the lower incisors project forwards in a Lemurine fashion. The
thumb is very short. A peculiarity of this genus is the twenty-two
dorso-lumbar vertebrae. As in _Chrysothrix_, but not as in _Callithrix_,
the hemispheres of the brain are smooth. There are five species, of which
one occurs so far north as Nicaragua; the rest are Brazilian, extending
down to the Argentine.
[Illustration]
FIG. 266.--Red-faced Ouakari. _Brachyurus rubicundus._ x 1/5.
The Ouakari Monkeys, _Brachyurus_,[433] are, as the name denotes,
short-tailed forms. Two species, _B. rubicundus_ and _B. calvus_, have
bright red faces; _B. melanocephalus_ has a black one. There is a small
thumb. The brain is fairly convoluted, and is to be specially compared with
that of _Cebus_ and _Pithecia_. The {561} species _B. rubicundus_ at any
rate has an absolutely as well as a relatively greater length of intestines
and caecum than any other American Monkey known.
[Illustration]
FIG. 267.--White-nosed Saki. _Pithecia albinasa._ x 1/5. (From _Nature_.)
Not the least remarkable fact about these Ouakari Monkeys is their
distribution in South America. We cannot do better than quote the summary
given by Messrs. P. L. and W. L. Sclater in their _Geography of Mammals_,
which is as follows: "Each of them, as first shown by Bates and afterwards
further explained by Forbes, is limited to a comparatively small tract of
forest on the banks of the Amazon and its affluents. The Black-headed
Ouakari (_B. melanocephalus_) ... is met with only in a tract {562}
traversed by the Rio Negro; the Bald-headed Ouakari appears to be confined
to the triangle formed by the union of the Amazon with another affluent,
the Japura; and the Red Ouakari to the forests on the north bank of the
Amazon opposite Olivenca, and lying between the main stream and the River
Ica. Each of them evidently takes the place of the others in its particular
district. Of this peculiar kind of distribution few instances are known
amongst mammals, but many somewhat similar cases have been observed in
birds, reptiles, and insects."
The genus _Pithecia_, the Sakis, consists of five species with long bushy
tails, which are non-prehensile. They are bearded and have a thumb. Like
the last genus, _Pithecia_ does not extend into Central America. The
incisors project forwards, and the lower jaw is deep, though the howling
apparatus of _Mycetes_ is wanting. The thin, closely-set, and projecting
incisors are very suggestive of those of the Lemurs. _Brachyurus_ is much
like _Pithecia_ in this respect, and both differ markedly from such a genus
as _Cebus_, where the lower incisors are vertical. An anatomical
peculiarity of _Pithecia_ is the breadth of the ribs. _P. satanas_ is
perhaps the best-known species, but all five have been exhibited at the
Zoological Society's Gardens. As its name suggests, _P. satanas_ is
entirely black; it shows a curious point of difference from _P.
cheiropotes_ in its way of drinking. The latter species, as its name
denotes, uses its hand to drink, while _P. satanas_ puts its mouth to the
water. _P. albinasa_ is black with a red patch on the nose, within which
again is a small white patch.
GROUP II. _CATARRHINA._
The Catarrhine Apes are divisible into three or perhaps only two families,
the Cercopithecidae and the Simiidae, to which must be added the Hominidae.
The Simiidae are sometimes spoken of as the Anthropoid Apes.
FAM. 1. CERCOPITHECIDAE.--Of the Cercopithecidae there are eight genera
(perhaps nine) to be recognised, which may be distributed into two
sub-families. The first of these two sub-families, that of the
CERCOPITHECINAE, has the following characters:--There are cheek pouches in
which the animals store food temporarily. {563} The stomach is simple and
globular; this corresponds with a mixed diet. The tail is long or short, or
practically absent.
[Illustration]
FIG. 268.--Tcheli Monkey. _Macacus tcheliensis._ x 1/6. (From _Nature_.)
The most familiar genus is undoubtedly _Macacus_. This includes all the
common so-called Macaques, the Bonnet Monkey, the Pig-tailed Monkey, etc.
In this genus we find that the males are larger than the females, and have
stronger canine teeth. Ischial callosities are well developed. The genus is
purely Asiatic, reaching as far east as Japan, with the exception of the
Barbary Ape, _M. inuus_, also known as the Gibraltar Ape. There are
altogether some seventeen species.
_Macacus inuus_ is doubtfully indigenous to Gibraltar. It is, however,
definitely established there at present, and is carefully fostered. It is a
large Ape with no external tail, in which {564} particular it is unique
among the members of its genus. At one time its extinction on the "Rock"
was nearly accomplished, but three individuals being known. In 1893 the
Governor of Gibraltar informed Mr. Sclater that he had himself counted as
many as thirty in one herd. Its depredations seem to have led to the
expression of a wish in some quarters that the numbers should be thinned;
but feeling on the opposite side appears to be stronger, so that whatever
was the actual mode of its introduction on to the "Rock" it will at any
rate remain there unmolested for the present.
_M. tcheliensis_ is a species found in the Yung-ling Mountains in North
China. It is, with the possible exception of _M. speciosus_, the most
northerly form of Monkey. It is interesting on account of the fact that
like the Tiger of those regions it has put on an extra coating of fur to
enable it to combat with the bitter winters. It is doubtful whether it is
more than a variety of the Rhesus Monkey (_M. rhesus_).
_M. nemestrinus_, "the Pig-tailed Macaque," is trained by the natives of
the east to climb cocoa-nut palms and to carefully select and throw down
only the ripe fruit. Sir Stamford Raffles apparently was the first to
report upon this useful intelligence of the animal, and Dr. Charles Hose of
Borneo has confirmed him.
The Japanese Macaque (_M. speciosus_) is well known from the work of
Japanese artists. It is the only species of Monkey found in Japan, and goes
very far north.
A rather rare form is _M. leoninus_. It has a short tail, and occurs in
Burmah. _M. silenus_ is distinguished by a ruff of long light-coloured hair
surrounding the face. It is sometimes called the Wanderoo; but this is
apparently quite inaccurate, since that term is used by the Ceylonese for a
_Semnopithecus_. For those who wish a "pseudo-vernacular" name Dr. Blanford
suggests Pennant's name of "Lion-tailed Monkey."
The commonest species of the genus are _M. cynomolgus_, _M. sinicus_, and
_M. rhesus_.
The genus _Cercocebus_, including those Monkeys known as Mangabeys, is
confined to West Africa. They have always a long tail, quite as long as the
body. The upper eyelids are pure white in colour. The ischial callosities
are more pronounced than in the Macaques. In the Mangabeys also the hairs
are not ringed with differently coloured bars, as is the case with both
{565} Macaques and _Cercopithecus_, giving to them the greenish hue which
characterises so many of the last two genera. There are no laryngeal air
sacs as in the Macaques. There are not more than seven species.
The genus _Cercopithecus_ (the Guenons) represents in Africa the Oriental
and Palaearctic Macaques; the genus has a long tail. The cheek pouches are
larger than in the genus _Macacus_. The ischial callosities are less
extensive than in that genus. A tooth character also distinguishes this
genus from _Macacus_; the last molar of the lower jaw has, as a very
general rule, only four cusps instead of the five which are found in
_Macacus_. The supraciliary ridges in the skull are by no means so marked
as in the allied genera.
One species, the Talapoin, _C. talapoin_, has been separated into a
distinct genus, _Miopithecus_, on account of the fact that the lower molars
have only three tubercles instead of the usual four. But if this be done,
then _Cercopithecus moloneyi_, which has a lower molar with five tubercles,
should also be separated.
[Illustration]
FIG. 269.--Diana Monkey. _Cercopithecus diana._ x 1/6.
The genus _Cercopithecus_ is limited to Africa, and its numerous species
have often a very limited range. They are frequently rather brightly
coloured, with blue and white patches on the face. The Diana Monkey has a
pointed white beard. Of the Vervet Monkey (_C. lalandii_) a curious fact
was noticed at the Zoological {566} Society's Gardens a year or two back:
the young was observed to take both teats of the mother into its mouth at
once. Mr. Sclater[434] in a recent list of the group allows forty-seven
species, of which thirty-three were examined by himself. Subsequently,
however, the list has been reduced to forty by the same authority. One of
the rarest species is _C. stairsi_, first described from a skin stripped
from a specimen which lived for a short time at the Zoological Gardens.
The genus _Cynocephalus_ (or _Papio_) includes the Baboons; and the
scientific name indicates the Dog-like aspect of these animals, due to the
projecting snout. _Cynocephalus_ is confined to Africa and Arabia. Several
of the species of the genus are well known. The Mandrill, _C. mormon_ (or
_maimon_), has blue ridges on the muzzle, the bridge of the nose being red.
The animal lives in herds, and is ferocious and omnivorous. The Chacma
Baboon, _C. porcarius_, is the largest of Baboons. It lives in South Africa
in large herds. The Arabian Baboon, _C. hamadryas_, is the Sacred Baboon of
the Egyptians. The names of two other species, _C. thoth_ and _C. anubis_,
serve also to remind us of the ancient Egyptians. There are altogether
eleven species of _Cynocephalus_.
_Gelada_ (or _Theropithecus_) is separated as a distinct genus. Though
regarded as a Baboon, Garrod has pointed out many points of likeness to
_Cercopithecus_.[435] The two species are, like the other Baboons, African.
_Cynopithecus niger_ is a small black Baboon from Celebes. It has swellings
on the muzzle as in other Baboons, but differs from them in being a more
amiable creature as well as in its smaller size. It has a rudimentary tail,
smaller even than the small tail of the typical Baboons. It has, like them,
ischial callosities.
In the second sub-family, SEMNOPITHECINAE, the following characters are
distinctive:--All the Apes of this group are slender in form, with a long
tail. There are no cheek pouches. The stomach is sacculated; it is divided
into three portions. This is accompanied by an apparently more exclusively
vegetarian diet than characterises other Apes, which mingle with their diet
of fruit a large proportion of insects, eggs, etc. {567}
[Illustration]
FIG. 270.--Black Celebesian Ape. _Cynopithecus niger._ x 1/5.
The first with which we shall deal is _Colobus_, containing the Monkeys
known as Guerezas. These creatures are entirely confined to the African
continent, and they are arboreal in habit. It has been attempted to show
that their affinities are more with the Platyrrhines than with the group in
which they are really to be placed. In favour of regarding them as nearer
akin to the American monkeys are only two facts of importance: the first is
the practical absence of the thumb, which of course recalls the condition
characteristic of _Ateles_; in the second place, the nostrils in their
wideness somewhat resemble those of the Platyrrhines. They are slender
Monkeys with well-marked callosities. They have a complex sacculated
stomach, resembling the large intestine of some other animals; it is not
divided into distinct chambers like the stomach of a Ruminant or of a
Whale. Correlated apparently with this large stomach is the small
development of the cheek pouches. This genus, of which there are about ten
species, is characterised by beautiful skins, which are largely collected.
The Arabs have a legend to the effect that one species, when wounded, and
seeing its capture and the removal of its skin {568} inevitable, carefully
tears the latter, that its captors may not profit by it. The species of
this genus are most abundant on the west coast of Africa. It is interesting
that one species, _C. kirki_, is limited to the Island of Zanzibar, where,
however, it is nearly extinct.
The "Holy Apes," or Langurs, genus _Semnopithecus_, are allied to the last,
but they are Asiatic in range. The thumb is better developed, but still
shorter than in other Cercopithecidae; the callosities are small, and the
cheek pouches are absent. There is a single large laryngeal sac, and the
stomach is complex.
This genus is, like the Tiger, often quoted as an example of a race
supposed to be characteristically tropical, existing habitually in the
coldest climate. A species of _Semnopithecus_ has been observed climbing
snow-laden branches at a height of 11,000 feet in the Himalayas. There are
some thirty species, which extend as far east as Borneo.
[Illustration]
FIG. 271.--Entellus Monkey or Hanuman. _Semnopithecus entellus._ x 1/6.
The name _Semnopithecus_ is derived from the fact that the Hanuman is
regarded as sacred by the Hindus. The best-known species of _Semnopithecus_
is this Langur or Hanuman, _S. entellus_. Being regarded as a sacred
animal, and with the advantage thus gained, it has become a fell nuisance
in gardens and to crops. Though the veneration with which the Hindoos
regard these animals will not allow them to slay them, they are exceedingly
thankful to a European who will enable them to {569} commit a sin
vicariously. This Ape has immense powers of leaping--a space of 20 to 30
feet can be cleared by them if one side, that from which the leap is taken,
be considerably higher than the other. They are useful to the Tiger hunter,
as they follow and hoot at this, their deadly enemy. _S. schistaceus_ is a
species which lives at great heights, not less than 5000 feet, in the
Himalayas.
The genus _Nasalis_ is hardly separable from the genus _Semnopithecus_. It
is a Bornean animal, and is distinguished by a comical long nose, which not
only suggests, but goes beyond, the aquiline nose of the human species. It
is no doubt on this account that the Borneans, unconsciously imitating our
habit of comparing "natives" in general to Monkeys, call it by a name which
signifies "white man." _Rhinopithecus_ has also a long, but a more
definitely upturned nose.
FOSSIL MONKEYS.--Several of the existing genera of Old-World Apes are also
known to have existed in past times; in some cases their past distribution
indicates a greater range. Thus _Macacus_ is now represented--and that
doubtfully--in Europe by the Barbary Ape alone. But from Montpellier have
been unearthed the remains of _M. priscus_, from Pliocene beds. The Asiatic
_Semnopithecus_ is known to have lived during the Pliocene period; its
remains are discovered in France and Italy, as well as in Asia. In addition
to these existing forms, a number of totally extinct Old-World genera are
known. The rich formation at Pikermi near Athens has produced _Mesopithecus
pentelici_; this Monkey has a skull which recalls that of _Semnopithecus_,
while the stout limbs are rather Macaque-like. As is the case with many
living Catarrhines, the males have stronger canines. The animal had a long
tail.
An analogous annectent character is shown by the Italian fossil,
_Oreopithecus bambolii_. This animal was referred by one palaeontologist to
the Man-like Apes, by another to the Cercopithecidae. It suggests a common
ancestral form, and is Middle Miocene in horizon.
Just as there are no Platyrrhine Apes in the Old World so there are no
Catarrhines met with in a fossil condition in the New World; the two great
divisions of the Apes were as distinct in the past, so far as we know, as
they are now--a strong argument in favour of those who would derive them
from two sources. The {570} existing genera, _Cebus_, _Mycetes_, and
_Callithrix_, now living in South America, are also known in a fossil
state. The extinct genus _Homunculus_ is known from the Tertiary strata of
Patagonia, and an apparently allied form is _Anthropops_. These creatures,
however, are at present far from exhaustively known.
FAM. 2. SIMIIDAE.--The Anthropoid, or Man-like Apes,[436] may be separated
from the lower Apes as a group, Simiae, or perhaps better, on account of
the after all slender points of difference, a family Simiidae, which has
the following distinctive characters.
Though arboreal creatures for the most part, these Apes, when they come to
the ground, progress in at least a semi-erect fashion. Moreover, when they,
as is usually the case, put their hands upon the ground to aid in walking,
they do not rest as do the lower Apes upon the flat of the hand, but upon
the back of the fingers. None of the Anthropoids has a tail, or cheek
pouches. Ischial callosities are only seen in the Gibbons. There is
commonly a laryngeal pouch, which is of large size, and aids in the
production of the generally loud voice of these creatures. The hair is
rather more scanty than in the Cercopithecidae, which is an approach to
Man. The placenta differs in detail from that of the lower Apes, and is
exactly like that of Man. These Apes show as further differences from the
underlying Cercopithecidae, the greater length of the arms as compared with
the legs, and the presence of a vermiform appendix to the caecum. In the
latter but not the former character they agree with Man, whom we shall
place in a separate family, Hominidae. The Anthropoid Apes are entirely Old
World and intratropical in range at the present time.
The Gibbons, genus _Hylobates_, stand quite at the base of the series of
existing Anthropoid Apes. They are the smallest and the most purely
tree-frequenting of all the members of that group. Connected with this
habit is the structural peculiarity that their arms are proportionately
longer than in the other Anthropoids. The affinity of the Gibbons to the
Catarrhines is proved by the presence of distinct but small ischial
callosities. The arms are so long that when walking upright the hands reach
the ground. The hallux is well developed. The ribs are thirteen pairs. In
the skull the chief noteworthy character as {571} compared with other
Anthropoids is the fact of the large size of the canines, which are of
equal or nearly equal size in the two sexes. The molars on the other hand
have been particularly compared to those of Man. The brain is simpler than
in the higher forms. But it is not clear that this may not be a case of
diminished complexity of convolution going hand in hand with smallness of
size.
[Illustration]
FIG. 272.--Hoolock. _Hylobates hoolock._ x 1/6.
The Gibbons range through south-eastern Asia from Assam and Burmah to
Hainan. The number of species is a little doubtful. It is clear that in the
first place we may distinguish the Siamang, _H. syndactylus_, which indeed
some regard as a separate genus. It is mainly to be defined by the
syndactylous character of the second and third toes; they are united by
skin as far as the last joint. The Hainan species, _H. hainanus_, is
probably distinct, and the following names have been given to various other
species or races, viz. _H. agilis_, _H. leuciscus_, _H. leucogenys_, _H.
lar_, _H. hoolock_. These animals can walk erect; and when they do so, the
big toe is separated as in unsophisticated or at least unbooted man. The
voice is well known to be loud, {572} and it is a curious fact that the
Siamang, which has a large laryngeal pouch, is not excelled in this respect
by species in which this sac is not developed.
[Illustration]
FIG. 273.--Cerebrum of the Gibbon (_Hylobates_). (Lateral aspect.) _c.c_',
_c.c_", Anterior and posterior central convolution; _fi_, interparietal
fissure; _fr_, frontal lobe; _f.s_, Sylvian fissure; _oc_, occipital lobe;
_pa_, parietal lobe; _s.c_, fissure of Rolando; _tp_, temporal lobe; *,
fronto-orbital fissure. (From Wiedersheim's _Structure of Man_.)
Of Gorillas, genus _Gorilla_, there is but one species, which must
apparently and rather unfortunately be called _Gorilla gorilla_.
The misfortune is double: in the first place the repetition of the same
word as both generic and specific appellation is tiresome to the ears and
barbarous in its suggestion; in the second place it is now well known that
the "Gorilla" of Hanno, observed by that Carthaginian voyager on an island
off the African coast, was not a Gorilla at all as the word is now
understood, but probably a Baboon. The external aspect of this great
Anthropoid is familiar from many reproductions. The male, as is usual, is
larger than the female, and his characters are more pronounced.
The face is naked and black, and the skin generally is deep black, even at
birth. The ear is comparatively small, and is adpressed to the side of the
head; it is altogether more human in form than that of the Chimpanzee, and
this statement applies also to the rudimentary condition of the muscles of
the ear, which are more rudimentary than in the Chimpanzee. The nose has an
obvious median ridge, and is thus pronounced as an external feature; the
nostrils are very wide. The hands and feet are short, thick, and broad; the
digits are webbed. In the foot the heel is more apparent than in other
Anthropoids. It is not, {573} however, so marked as in Man, and the phrase
"Ex pede Herculem" has been aptly supplemented by "Ex calce hominem." The
hair upon the head forms a kind of crest, which can be elevated when the
animal is enraged. The neck is thick and short, and the beast has massive
shoulders and a broad chest.
[Illustration]
FIG. 274.--Gorilla. _Gorilla gorilla_, [female]. x 1/8.
If it were not for the fewness of the Anthropoid Apes, and their nearness
to Man, it is doubtful whether the Gorilla would be ranked as a distinct
genus,[437] for in internal structure it is very near the Chimpanzee. The
microscopic character of the investigations into the anatomy of Man have
somewhat dimmed the proper sense of perspective, and have tended to throw
into greater prominence than seems necessary the divergences of structure
seen in the Gorilla. Dr. Keith[438] has recently summed up and commented
upon these divergences, and the following account of this Anthropoid is
mainly deduced from his memoir.