DISTRIBUTION OF OPHIDIANS. 211 



animals wliich inhabit the countries situated to the north 

 of the grand plateau of Africa, and those which inhabit 

 Western Asia as far as Hindustan. It is true, that in 

 both continents these animals choose as their abode deserts 

 M'hich appear to be continuous. The regions of Africa, 

 indeed, that border on the Mediterranean, support some 

 animals which are natives of all the coast of that sea, and 

 which, consequently, are found also in some parts of Europe. 

 Before commencing a detail of the geographical distribu- 

 tion of African serpents, I may be permitted to strengthen 

 my remarks, by citing several curious facts drawn from 

 the distribution of other animals inhabiting that continent. 

 The number of animals scattered over the surface of 

 Africa, without exhibiting local differences, appears to be 

 rather limited, and these animals belong to species of great 

 size, such as the elej)hant, the giraffe, the hippopotamus, 

 the common crocodile, the lion, &c. Among tiie animals 

 common to most parts of the grand African plateau, a 

 great number of ruminants are chiefly distinguishable ; 

 such, for example, are the Cape Buffalo, of which 

 M. BiJppELL brought home the spoils from Abyssinia; the 

 Antilope strepsiceros, which inhabits the Cape, Abyssinia, 

 and the coast of Guinea ; the Antilope equina of Senegal, 

 probably identical with the Ant. leucoplia3a of the Cape ; 

 the Antilope oreotragus, which is found at the CajDC, in 

 Ashantee, and in Abyssinia ; the Ant. pygarga (of which 

 the young is Ant. personata), which is found at the Cape, 

 and on the Gold Coast, &;c. Many other animals are 

 equally found in lands very distant from each other ; as, 

 for example, the Phascochcerus communis, which is the 

 same at the Cape and at Senegal ; the Sciurus setosus is 

 equally proper to those two regions ; as are also Myoxus 

 murinus, Canis pictus, Gulo mellivorus (the Batel), the 

 Geometric Tortoise, and others. A no less considerable 

 number of animals, on the other hand, present, in those 

 different African localities, local varieties sometimes verv 

 curious. Thus, we find the Cape Jackal, Canis mesomelas, 

 replaced in the northern parts of Africa, by a variety witli 

 bright tints, without the black on the back (Canis varie- 

 gatus et Anthus ?) of the Frankfort Museum ; the Hyrax 



