38 



park breed of White Cattle as being their direct descendants is 

 quite unsupported by what little we know of their history (cf. supra, 

 p. 25). 



10. Bos longifrons, Owen. 



Smaller Fossil Ox. 



In the paper referred to under the last species, Dr. J. A. Smith 

 has shown that remains of the Smaller Fossil Ox have been found in 

 the Hebrides and Orkney, as well as in Caithness, Sutherland, Ross, 

 Forfar, Kincardine, Stirling, Lanark, East, West, and Mid Lothian, 

 Wigtown, Kirkcudbright, and Roxburghshire. They are often 

 associated with remains of human industry, and may in some cases 

 have belonged to domesticated animals. In geological age there 

 appears to be now no doubt that this species is even more recent 

 than the last, and all the evidence seems to point to its being the 

 ancestor of the short-horned races of our domestic Cattle. 



Order V.: GLIRES. 

 Family: CASTORIDAE. 



11. Castor fiber, Linnaeus. 



Beaver. 



Gael, Losleathan, Dobhran-losleathan (lit., broad-tail, broad- 

 tailed otter; cf. Welsh Llosdlydan; Irish, Davaran-loisleathan); 

 Beathodach (from Old Gael, beathra, water). 



The palaeontological and traditionary evidence of the existence of 

 the Beaver in Scotland has been investigated by Neill (Edin. Phil. 

 Journ,, i., pp. 177-187), and by Dr. C. Wilson (New Phil. Journ,, 

 2nd Ser., vin., pp. 1-40). The first recorded sub-fossil skull was 

 one from Perthshire, presented by Dr. Farquharson to the Scottish 

 Society of Antiquaries in 1788; others have been since found in 

 Roxburghshire and Berwickshire. Of its range into the historical 

 period the evidence is not very satisfactory. In the 1 2th century, 

 Giraldus de Barri, who met with Beavers in Wales, was informed 

 that they still existed in one river in Scotland, but were rare 

 (Itiner. Cambr., lib. ii., cap. 3). In a capitular of export duties of 

 David I. (1124-1153), skins of Beveris are included (Acts Pari. 

 Scotl., i., p. 303); but they are not mentioned in a similar act of 



