April, 1907. The Irish Naturalist. 133 



THE PROBLEMS OF AN ISLAND FAUNA. 



BY C. B. MOFFA/T, B.A. 



[Presidential Address to the Dublin Naturalists' Field Club, 



8 January, 1907]. 



If any one were at the present moment to attempt a retrospect 

 of the past year's work in Irish natural history it would be a 

 very incomplete one; and it is, I think, -a gratifying sign of 

 the progress of scientific research amongst us that we are 

 promised within a few weeks' time so full an account of the 

 zoology, botan)', and geology of Lambay — the result of recent 

 researches carried out chiefly, I believe, by individual members 

 of this Club— that two ordinary numbers of the Irish Natwalist 

 would need to be fully devoted to it, and consequently the 

 editors have thought it advisable to merge two numbers into 

 one, which is to appear some time in February. I believe that 

 the investigation of the fauna and flora of the very smallest 

 island is a matter of great interest, and I hope that some of 

 the results from a small island on our east coast may prove, 

 when we see them set forth, not less interesting in their way 

 than those more sensational discoveries relating to the zoology 

 of a remote past with which Dr. Scharffand Mr. Ussher have 

 of late been so largely contributing to our storehouses of 

 knowledge by their patient exploration of the caves in the 

 west and south. 



It would be difficult to exaggerate the importance of the 

 work that has been done towards the solution of Irish faunal 

 problems during quite recent years. Dr. Scharff, by his very 

 remarkable work on "The Origin of the European Fauna," 1 

 has given us a clearer conception of the way in which many 

 of these problems may be solved than Irish naturalists ever 

 possessed before. I do not propose this evening to attempt 

 to discuss the different elements of our fauna, which have 

 been so ably analysed in that book, or to consider what or 

 where are likely to have been the bridges over which, at 

 different times, the)* crossed from their original homes to 

 populate Ireland, or how long it probably is since those 



1 Iyondou : Walter Scott. 1899. 



