Vol. XXIV, pp. 191-194 June 23, 1911 



PROCEEDINGS 



OF THE 



BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON 



THE GENERIC NAME OF THE AFRICAN BUFFALO. 



BY N. HOLLISTER. 



[Published by permission of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.] 



Aside from conspicuous and well known differences in the 

 general appearance of the animals and in the types of their 

 horns, the buffaloes of Africa and of the Indian region are dif- 

 ferentiated by constant characters of real generic value. At 

 present these buffaloes are commonly combined in the genus 

 Bubalus, with Bubalus coffer of South Africa as the type, or even 

 loosely thrown in the old Linnsean genus Bos. The type of 

 Bubalus H. Smith is, however, by tautonymy Bos bubalis Lin- 

 naeus, the Indian Buffalo. The Cape Buffalo and its allies 

 should stand as a separate genus, the correct name for which 

 appears to be Syncerus Hodgson. The synonymy and general 

 characters of the two genera follow 7 : 



Genus Bubalus Smith. 



1827. Bubalus H. Smith, Griffith's Cuvier's Animal Kingdom, V, p. 

 371. (Subgenus of Bos.) Type by tautonymy, Bos bubalus Smxth= 

 Bos hubalis Linx^eus. 



Skull much less massive than in Syncerus ; more narrow and elongated ; 

 facial profile nearly straight ; rostrum relatively long and slender. Nasal 

 bones elongated and slender, narrowed in middle, and projecting much 

 beyond end of median suture; thus longest laterally. Vomer fused with 

 palatine bones and palatine plate of maxilla the entire length of median 

 suture. Audital bullae very small, reaching to about plane of ventral 

 surface of basi-occipital. Molars short and high, crowns almost square. 

 Hair of dorsum reversed, directed forward from haunches to head; ears 

 comparatively small, without conspicuous fringes. Indian Region. 



The Tamarau (B. mindorensis Heude), from Mindoro, agrees with B. 

 bubalis in the above general characters and can not be subgenerically 

 separated. I have not seen a skull of Anoa depressicornis from Celebes. 



35— Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash., Vol. XXIV, 1911. (191) 



