1899.] Ai,cock. — The Hairy-armed Bat. 173 



The habits of this species in captivity do not seem to have 

 been observed since 1858, when Mr. Darragh's specimen lived 

 for ten days in confinement. Mr. G. P. Farran, on February 

 13th, very kindly presented me with a female which he had 

 obtained at Rathfarnham, Co. Dublin, and which lived with 

 me for some time. For nearly a month it remained in a 

 typical state of hibernation, but on March nth it woke up 

 and ate raw meat dipped in milk, not appearing in the least 

 degree wild or shy. A few days of cold weather sent it back 

 to sleep, then it reappeared, very lively, and with a great 

 appetite. 



It always slept during the day, waking up about 8.30 p.m., 

 when it was taken out of its cage and placed on the dining- 

 room table. Here it ate raw meat in truly enormous quantities, 

 and exercised itself scurrying round the table, never attempting 

 to fly, though occasionally falling off on to the floor! It 

 learned to come to a pair of scissors, the clicking together of 

 the blades serving as a " dinner bell," and would always walk 

 towards one's hands, which it climbed over and finally crouched 

 down in, apparently enjoying the warmth. Its career was 

 closed by an unexpected tragedy, as on the evening of April 6th, 

 while careering round the floor, it was accidentally crushed, 

 to the great grief of all its acquaintance. 



The photographs on Plate 7 were all taken from this 

 specimen during life, while the animal was hibernating. The 

 position of the tail, the post-calcanean lobule, the toes — 

 alwa3's widely separated during life — and the beautiful curves 

 of the ears are worthy of note. When the bat wakes, it raises 

 itself from the ground, and the widely open eyes give an alert 

 expression to the countenance which changes its character 

 considerably. 



The cry of this species is moderately high in pitch, corres- 

 ponding to about 17,000 vibrations per second, as measured 

 by Galton's whistle ; a fair imitation can be made by 

 striking a sixpenny piece against a halfpenny. 



The distribution of this bat is remarkable. It occurs 

 probably throughout the whole of the Palaearctic region, being 

 reported from France, Germany, Middle Russia, and the Ural, 

 extending west as far as the Azores, and east to the Himalayas. 

 In the British Isles, with which we are more immediately 

 concerned, its distribution is curiously local, in England being 



