2 ARKIV FÖR ZOOLOGI. BAND 7. N:0 6. 



In writing his above quoted paper Forsyth Major re- 

 cognised five species and two subspecies of Potamochoerus viz. 



1. Potamochoerus larvaUis (F. Cuv.) from Madagascar 



2. » choeropotamus (Desmoul.) from S. and S. E. 



Africa with the subspecies: 



P. c7i. nyasce Major from Nyasaland 

 » » c?cemon/5 Major from Kilimanjaro 



3. Potamochoerus johnstoni Major from N. W. Nyasaland 



4. » kassarna (Heuglin) from Abyssinia 



5. » porcus (Lin.) from West Africa, »from An- 

 gola to Senegambia and eastwards to Monbuttu». 



The validity of these forms appears to be proved by 

 this investigation, but some of them are much more closely 

 related to each other tban to others. An examination of a 

 considerable number of skins and mounted specimens of 

 Potamochoerus reveals that tbey may easily be divided into 

 two groups whieh may be said to correspond to a southern 

 and eastern geographical distribution on one side, and to a 

 western on the other. The former comprises P. choeropotamus 

 and allied forms, the lat ter P. porcus and its allies. It can 

 thus be spöken about a P. choeropotamus-gronp and a P. 

 porcus-grouip. 



The characteristics of the first group are the following: 

 The hair all över the body consists of long, partly very long 

 bristles which, however, often are not very dense. In adult 

 animals the skin often can be seen between the scattered 

 bristles. The dorsal måne or crest is very strongly developed 

 and it begins often already on the nape between the ears. 

 The long bristles of this måne are dark, blackish or dark 

 brown, with more or less strongly developed whitish tips, 

 which sometitnes may be dominating in colour, although 

 the bristles are dark at the base. The ears are externally 

 black with black margin and black fringe and tuft. The 

 forehead of adult specimens between the ears and the eyes 

 is as a rule påle (greyish) in colour, but may sometimes be 

 more or less mixed with dark brown. In the latter case, 

 however, it is not a sharply circumscribed area which con- 

 trasts with the surroundings but an extension to the forehead 

 of the general colour. In front of the big warts on the snout 

 there is a broad black ring which is more or less sharply 

 defined and in front of which there sometimes is a whitish 



