50 



ESSAY ON CLASSIFICATION 



only one toe, or two, three, four, or five toes, and the number of 

 toes may vary between the fore and hind legs. The classification 

 adopted here is based upon these characters. In the second place, the 

 geographical distribution is noticed. But it is at once apparent that 

 the home of these animals stands in no relation whatsoever to their 

 zoological arrangement. On the contrary, the most remote genera 

 may occur in the same country, while the most closely related may 

 live far apart. 



GENERA WITH FOUR LEGS 



Tropidophorus, 1 species, Cochin-China. 

 Scincus, 1 sp., Syria, North and West Africa. 

 Sphenops, 1 sp., Egypt. 

 Diploglossus, 6 sp.. West Indies and Brazils. 

 Amphiglossus, 1 sp., Madagascar. 

 Gongylus, with 7 sub-genera: 



Gongylus, 2 sp.. Southern Europe, Egypt, Ten- 



eriffe. Isle de France. 

 Eumeces, 11 sp., East and West Indies, South 

 America, Vanikoro, New Ireland, New 

 Guinea, Pacific Islands. 

 Euprepes, 13 sp.. West coast of Africa, Cape of 

 Good Hope, Egypt, Abyssinia, Seychelles, 

 Madagascar, New Guinea, East Indies, Sunda 

 Islands, Manila. 

 Plestiodon, 5 sp., Egypt, Algiers, China, Japan, 



United States. 

 Lygosoma, 19 sp.. New Holland, New Zealand, 

 Java, New Guinea, Timor, East Indies, Pa- 

 cific Islands, United States. 

 Leiolopisma, I sp., Mauritius and Manila. 

 Tropidolopisma, 1 sp.. New Holland. 

 Cyclodus, 3 sp.. New Holland and Java. 

 Trachysaurus, 1 sp.. New Holland. 

 Ablepharus, 4 sp.. Southeastern Europe, New 

 Holland, Pacific Islands. 

 With five toes to the fore feet and jour toes to the hind feet: Campsodactylus, I sp., 

 Bengal. 



Hcteropus, 3 sp., Africa, New Holland, Isle de 



France. 



Gymnophthalmus, 1 sp., W. Indies and Brazil. 



With five toes to the fore feet, as 

 well as to the hind feet: 



With jour toes to the fore feet and 

 five toes to the hind feet: 



With four toes to the fore feet and 

 four toes to the hind feet: 



Tetradactylus, 1 sp., New Holland. The genus 

 Chalcides of the allied family Chalcidioids, ex- 

 hibits another example of this combination. 



With four toes to the fore feet and three toes to the hind feet: No examples known 

 of this combination. 



With three toes to the fore feet and jour toes to the hind feet: Not known. 



With three toes to the fore feet and f ^^^^'^''g'^' ^ ^p.. New Holland 



three toes to the hind feet: 1 ^'P'' ^ ^P' ^- ^"™P^ ^']^ ^- ^^"'^- 



I Nessia, I sp., Origm unknown. 



