160 The Rev. L. Jenyns on the Common Bat of Pennant. 
to be nearly as follows :— Length of body three inches and a half ; 
head about one inch; tail about two inches; and the extent of wing 
fifteen inches and upwards. Whereas, in our Common e 
Bat, the length, measured from the nose to the insertion of t 
tail, is only one inch and seven lines; that of the head six liebe: j 
of the tail fourteen ; and the extent of wing rarely, if ever, ex- 
ceeds eight inches and a half. It will surely be allowed that a 
discrepancy so great as this,—especially when viewed in con- 
nection with the other differences above alluded to, which are 
sufficiently obvious to all who investigate the matter to preclude 
the necessity of being more particularly pointed out,—is at once 
sufficient to establish the error of those naturalists who have 
considered these as belonging to the same species, and to war- 
rant their separation in future. 
Which of these two Bats has most claim to be considered 
as the true Vespertilio murinus of Linnzeus, for the reason before 
given, it is difficult to decide. Nevertheless, if we may hazard 
a conjecture, I am inclined to think, from this circumstance of 
its larger dimensions, that the identity is greater in the case of 
the continental species than in ours. It is true, that Linnzeus 
in his concise description says nothing direct about size; but 
since. mere selon. to the. Kespertilio major of Brisson *, which that 
| al oot in axlent. of fing it would 
me synonyms were reas tme idus without vine 
* In fact, these two authors refer to one another. Brisson quotes the sixth edition 
of the Systema Nature, and Linnæus in the twelfth edition quotes Brisson.—Brisson 
was th DNE afix any specific name to this Bat, the edition of the Systema Nature 
first mentioned. appeared before trivial names were established; and the term 
Bn thi Pepe was afterwards ES a Linneus i in his 
later edition to that of murin nce of Bris 
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