Mi:.M()ll;S OK TlIK NATIONAL ACADK.MY OK S< IKNl KS. 107 



Till' ivmaiiiiii-; ten, :illli..iiy;li willioiit r.'pirsciitativ.-s in tlir Itiilisli seas, liavr (luilo a ficiieral 

 (listrilmtioii, viz: 



Kliiiiobitttdii'. Liitjaiiidir. 



My>'tu]>hiUu>. KyiibuHiilii-. 



Ophiclithyidiu. UriiiioMiDpidiu. 



B«"yci<lii'. Cliiiidir. 



Noin.'idu'. Urotiili.lii-. 



A fomparisoii of tho IVosli water representatives of the two faiuuus sliows even a more striking 

 contrast. Those chaiiuteristic of (lie Nortiiein llcniisplien^ are, with th«! excei)tioii of tiie Anicii 

 tinida; entiielj' uniepresented in the Southern, whihi the Antipodal typesare wantintr i" the Nnrtii 

 ern zones. Tlie fresli water fishes of New Zealand belonj,' to three families, viz: 

 Hiiplocbitouidi.'. Aru.iitiuid.r. 



Onlaxidii>. (I{«tnii>iiiiia. ) 



Of course the Anguillids. which are marine lishosof ;,MMieral distribution, lireediii},'onl,v in tin- 

 sea, and the species introduced from Britain, are not considered in tiiis connection. 



As to some remaininj!: features and peculiarities, the list and tabulated summary will he 

 self-explanatory; as to others, a coiupari.soii with the faunas of the corre.spondiuf,' isotherms of 

 Australia and the Southern Hemisphere generally is necessary. 



A few more remarks, however, seem to be called for. 



The fishes enumerated by Prof. Hutton in his lecent "List of the New Zealand Fishes," and 

 therefore carried over into the following;- enumeration, l)elonf,' to no less than six distinct geo- 

 graphical realms, viz: 



1. Notalian realm, including most of the .species. 



2. Antarctaliau realm, characterized especially by the Notofheniids. 



3. Pelagaliau realm, represented by the isuroid and some other sharks, large Scombrids, 

 Gempylids, a Nomeid, several Oarangids {JVaiicratoi, Scriola, Vtiran.v), the Lampridid, Scopelids, 

 and various others. 



4. Bassalian realm, to wliich belong the Bathysaurus, Jicnthoihsmus, Hdlargyreug, Bathygadtix, 

 most Macrurids, .Enaonichtliys, and several other less tyi)ical forms. 



."). Tropicalian realm, from which have wandered the Ophixurus, Murana, Sphyrann, and (if 

 they have really been found in New Zealand) the Teuthis, Da^cylliM, and Ostraeion, besides others. 



G. Ornithoga'an realm, almost indistinguishable, so far as the fishes are concerned, from the 

 Austroga-an and Am])higa'an realms. This includes all the fresh-water lishes which maiidy repre- 

 sent two families, Ilaidocliitonids and Galaxiids. ;ind whose principal genus, Galaxias, is e.\emi»li- 

 fied by nearly related species in the colder waters of Australia and South America. 



The consideration of these various elements and comparison of them with those of other 

 regions point to the following conclusions: 



The main marine fauna of New Zealand is derived from representatives of the general stock 

 which has become develo])ed in the great notalian realm. The number of species apparent Iv 

 peculiar to the province and therefore modified from other or earlier representatives indicates a 

 long period of isolation in accordance with its distance from the nearest continents and the depth 

 of the intervening ocean. The percentage of such peculiar species .seems to entitle it to rank as 

 a di.stinct region (or subregion) rather than as an integral portion of the notalian region composed 

 of the isothermal ]>ortions of Australia and Tasnuinia, as has been generally done. A more ex 

 tended .study and actual comparison of the species of the two regions may, however, compel a 

 reconsideration of this view. 



The freshwater fishes must have been derived from the sam(> common source as those of the 

 isothermal i)ortioiis of Australia (ofcour.se including Tasmania) and South Anu'rica. There may 

 not have been a continuity of land at any one time between South American, Australia, and New 

 Zealand, but, at some remote period in the past, it is at least possible that there was a region in 

 which the (ralaxiids and Uaplochitonids were developed, and sub.se(|uently representatives of 

 those families might have found their way into the regions where they now abound. Rut. it inav 

 lie urged, siu-li a derivation is only possible and there nniy have been other means for ditl'usion of 

 the .same types. 



