REVISION OF AMERICAN MOLES— TRUE. 



The last reviewer of tlie group, the late Dr. Dobsoii. adopts Dr. (iiU's 

 arraiigenieiit, only adding the genus Scaptonyx and i)laciug UrojhsilKS 

 in a separate section ( UropsiU).^ It is to be observed, however, that he 

 does not formally divide the family into the two subfamilies Mygalinw 

 and Tulpinw, since he does not regard the characters on which these 

 distincti(ms are founded as sufficiently trenchant. In this I agree with 

 him, though for convenience 1 have emploj^ed the divisions in the key 

 on p. 7. 



The aberrant genus Co7idi/lura, though placed with the typical moles 

 in the subfamily Taljnnw, has the jiterygoid region of the skull only 

 moderately inflated, a manubrium sterni short in comparison with that 

 of Scalops and the like, and the clavicles somewhat elongated. In all 

 these respects it shows a leaning toward the genera which are jdaced 

 in the subfamily Mygalince. 



On the other hand, Neurofriehus, a member of the Mygalbuv, has a 

 considerably inflated pterygoid region. 



Further, it is perhaps questionable whether such a subdivision of 



the family as that under consideration aids in understanding the phy- 



logeuy of the group. I doubt whether the American 



genera Scalojys and Seajjanus have been connected with 



the true European moles ( TaJpa, etc.) at any recent time. 



Condylura is a greatly 

 modified genus, having 

 no representative in Eu- 

 rope, though possibly 

 remotely connected with 

 Urotrich vx, through 

 N^eiirofrichus and Para- 

 scalops. The genus -ZV^eJj- 

 rotriclius is, of course, 

 very closely allied to 

 Urotrichus^ but this is 

 the only case in which 

 an Old World type is 

 represented in the New 

 World. The moles are 

 an old family, and very 

 little is known of their 

 geological history. Ueuce, in my opinion, speculations as to the 

 derivation of the various forms now existing and tlieir true relation- 

 ships are in many cases of little value. We have among American 

 mammals both forms which are (geologically speaking) quite recent 

 importations from the Old World, and others which are indigenous, or 

 at least have had representatives on the American continent for a very 

 long time. So far as the moles are concerned the present condition of 

 knowledge is not such as to enable us in the majority of cases to dis- 

 tinguish between the two classes. At all events it does not seem to 



Fig. 1, Scapa 



PELVES OK MOLES. 



us. Fig. 2, Scalops. Fig. »,!'.■» 

 (Twice iLitural size.) 



galops. 



'Mouogr. Inseetivora, iiart '2, 1883, j). 128. 



