Mr. R. F. Tomes on the genus Miniopteris. 153 



straight forward ; but in dried specimens they have a sublateral di- 

 rection. 



The ears are very short, somewhat quadrangular in form, with 

 the angles rounded, and have their outer margin brought forward 

 along the face in the form of a very narrow strip of membrane to 

 near the corners of the mouth. The inner margin rises from the 

 side of the head in a perpendicular direction for a very short distance, 

 and then making an angle, which if not rounded off would be a right 

 angle, proceeds outwards in nearly a straight line, and forms another 

 similar rounded angle with the outer margin. About the middle of 

 the outer margin is a slight hollow. 



The tragus reaches fully halfway up the ear, and in actual mea- 

 surement nearly equals it in length, both being viewed as simple 

 projections and measured along their central lines. Its form is 

 somewhat similar to that of the tragus of the common Pipistrelle ; 

 but it is relatively longer and narrower, of absolutely uniform breadth, 

 and with the tip more regularly rounded. It curves inwards for 

 the whole of its length, but most strikingly so about one-fourth of 

 the distance from the end. 



The wings are long in relation to the size of the animal, and the 

 longest finger is fully twice the length of the fore-arm. The middle 

 phalanges of the two longest fingers in the wing are very short, but 

 the relative lengths of the same parts in the other fingers are not 

 remarkable. In the relative proportions of these bones to each other, 

 they closely resemble the same parts in Furipterus, but in no other 

 group that I have had the opportunity of examining. Thumb of 

 medium length and size, with the terminal phalange a little longer 

 than the basal one ; its claw rather strongly hooked. 



The wing-membranes are attached as far as to the extremity of 

 the tibiae. 



The hinder limbs are of medium proportion ; but the feet are rather 

 large, and have the toes of about one-half of their entire length. The 

 claws, although of moderate size, are strongly hooked. 



The tail is long, and is composed of nine vertebrae, and is fully 

 equal in length to the head and body. It is wholly enclosed by the 

 interfemoral membrane, which has about thirteen transverse dotted 

 lines, which are very near together on its basal portion. All the 

 membranes are somewhat diaphanous, but present no great pecu- 

 liarities of reticulated or other markings. 



The fur is soft and thick, of medium length, and rather faintly 

 bicoloured, both above and below. That of the upper parts is dark 

 brownish grey at the base, its terminal half paler and strongly 

 tinged with brown. Beneath it has similarly coloured roots, with 

 palish grey-brown tips. Such is the colour of the European ex- 

 amples. Those from Algeria are characterized by a strong ashy 

 tinge over the whole of the fur, and in some specimens the pubal 

 region is wholly ash-coloured. Examples from Lake Ngami have all 

 the upper parts of the body of a deep brownish grey (similar in co- 

 lour to the roots of the hair in the European specimens), with the 

 extreme tips of the hairs slightly paler, but not browner. Beneath, 



