EINAR LÖNNBERG, SOME SOUTH AMERICAN CANID^. 15 



out/ its trancated occipital crest and lyrate sagittal area 

 indicates more affinity with certain South American wild 

 dögs than with the true Canis. The same is also the case 

 with the målar bone and the structure of the same for the 

 insertion of the masseter muscle, and in all these respeets 

 the Yaghan dog resembles the true Canis, The heel of 7?* 

 of Z>. antarcticus is really set off at a more decided right 

 angle to the longitudinal axis of the tooth than in most other 

 South American Canidce, but in other respeets the structure 

 of this tooth differs from the same f. i. of Canis latranSy as 

 PococK has shown, and in this respect as well the Yaghan dog 

 is like the Coyote. Other differences between D. antarcticus 

 and the Yaghan dog are that p^ and p^ of the former have 

 no posterior cusps, while such are developed in the latter. 

 The posterior choanae of D. antarcticus are, to judge from a 

 skull in this museum, rather narrow, about 10,3 mm, but, 

 although the Yaghan dog is smaller, the corresponding 

 measurement of the same is about 15 mm. The canines of 

 D. antarcticus are rather long and slender, those of the 

 Yaghan dog more dog-like, short and stout. There is thus 

 hardly anything that speaks for any affinity between D. 

 antarcticus and the Yaghan dog. 



It appears thus to be quite evident, that the ancestors 

 of the Yaghan dögs must have been introduced from other 

 countries, and the question arises then from wbich. To solve 

 this it is of importance to try to find out: how long time 

 have the Yaghan Indians been in possession of dögs? 

 Unfortunately I am not able to decide this as I have not 

 been able to get much information on this subject. In 

 Darwin's narrative about his voyage with the »Beagle» dögs 

 are mentioned at least twice. During the excursion in the 

 Beagle Channel in January 1833 he writes for the 28th of 

 this month that the silence of the night was broken by the 

 occasional barking of a dog. At another place he tells 

 about an episode which took place, when the ship was 

 anchored in Port Famine. For the purpose of frigthening 

 the natives, termed »Fuegians» by Darwin, one night a 

 rocket was fired över their wigwams. The result of this 

 was, that first a clamour was raised, and the dögs were heard 

 barking, but soon afterwards profound silence prevailed. 



' Proc. Zool. Soc. 1913, p. 382. 



