GEOGRArillCAL DISTKlBtTTIOX. IXXV 



3. Jiemarls on the geoi/rcqjlucal distrihation. 



The northern limits of the area known to be inhabited by Mega- 

 chiroptcra are Seneg:ambia, Egypt, Cyprus, Syria, South Arabia, 

 Karachi (one unverified record of I'teropus girjanteus from Kelat), 

 Himalayas, Amoy, Formosa, South Liu-kiu Islands, Bonins, Pelew 

 Islands, and Mariannes ; in I'olynesia they occur as far east as the 

 Samoa Islands. No Pruit-bat is known from North Africa west 

 of Egypt and north of Senegal, nor from Asia Minor, Persia, Japan 

 proper (records in literature of Pteropus dosi/mallus from Kiushiu 

 and Hondo probably refer to captive specimens), Hawaii, New 

 Zealand, and Tasmania (one ])robahly erroneous record of riero/ms 

 poJiocephalus). The only fossil Fruit-bat thus far described is 

 Archcopteroptis irmisiens, from the Upper Oligocene of Italy 

 C' llousettus" (/aillardi, from the Middle Miocene of France, was, 

 judging from 'the published figure of its humerus, a species of 

 Microchiro])tera). 



Of the four primary sections of Jfegachiroptera, one, the Epomo- 

 ]i7iorHS section (8 genera, 17 species, 19 forms), is strictly con- 

 fined to the Ethiopian region ; a second, the Cjinopterus sectiou 

 (11 genera, 31 species, 41 forms), extends from India and Ceylon 

 in the west to the Solomon Islands and Australia in the east, and is 

 represented bv one genus {Mijonyctevls, -4 species) in West Africa ; 

 a third, the Sfacroqlossina' (7 genera, 13 species, iil forms), ranges 

 from'Indo-China eastward to the Fiji Islands, and reoccurs, in a 

 single genus and species (Mer/ahr/lossvs), in West Africa ; the 

 fourth, the liouseltus section (9 genera, V2o species, 1-17 forms), in 

 the number of species more than twice as large as the three other 

 sections together, covers the whole of the area inhabited by Mega- 

 chiroptera, from West Africa east to the Samoa Islands. 



A few genera have a very wide distribution : Ihnsettits (l-i species) 

 from West Africa to the Solomon Islands (but not to Australia), 

 Flernpus (So species, 103 forms, the largest of all genera, in the 

 number of species nearly equal to all the other genera together) 

 from the island of Pemba (south of Zanzibar), through the Mala- 

 gasy, Oriental, and Australian regions to the Samoa Islands; 

 others have a moderately wide range, e. g. Macroghssus from Indo- 

 China to the Solomon Islands (not to Australia), Chinopteras from 

 India and Ceylon to Celebes. But for the mnjority of genera the 

 geographical "limits are much narrower, and not a few (chiefly 

 monotypic genera) are so far known only from one place, island, 

 or group of islands : Spharias from Burma only, Dtiacopterus and 

 Balioni/clfiris from Borneo, Chironax from Java, Uarpi/ioni/cteris 

 and Pienochints from the Philippines, Boncia and ^Slglocieniiim from 

 Celebes, Pteralopex and Nesoivjrteris from the Solomon Islands : all 

 I'lpomophorine genera, c:s.ce\>th: porno phorus, as well as Mi/onifderis 

 and Megnhglossvs are practically confined to the whole or part of 

 the great West African Forest Tract. 



The range of the species is, of course, as a rule restricted within 

 much narrower limits, or if a species is widely distributed it has 

 usuallv difl'erentiated into a number of local forms; Pteiopvs hi/po- 



