XC CEOGRArUrCAL DiSTRIBUnOX. 



(5) Indigenous representatives of a chiefly Polynesian type, th'o 

 peculiar genus FleraIo2'>ex (two species), allied to the I'teropiis 

 psehiplion group, tlic members of which are North-west Polj-nesian 

 in distribution, with the exception of one species occurring in the 

 rhilippines. 



A discussion of the distribution of the various species throughout 

 the Solomon Archipelago would to a great extent be prematv;re ; 

 the Fruit-bat fauna of northern chain of islands (Ctioiseul, Isabel, 

 Malayta) is as yet entirely unknown, that of the extreme eastern 

 islands (San Christovnl group) very imperfectly explored, and there 

 is probably not a little to be added to our knowledge of the Eruit- 

 bats of the other islands as well. But two important facts are 

 already now sufficiently well established to call for some comment 

 here. First, that some species (liouseiiiis brachyotis, Niictimene 

 scihdus, Nesonycttris woo'lfortli, and probably Pteropus ivoudforili) 

 are evidently uniformly distributed from the Bougainville group in 

 the west eastward through the southern chain at least as far as 

 Guadalcauar. Second, that in spite of this spreading of a few 

 species over the greater part (if not the whole) of the Archipelago, 

 there is unmistakable evidence that the Fruit-bat fauna of the 

 Solomon Islands consists in reality of a series of more or less dis- 

 tinctly separated " fauuula\" This is most clearly shown by the 

 distribution of the si)ecie8 of the Pteropus rayneri group : Pt. yrandis 

 inhabits the Bougainville group, is in Vella Lavella replaced bj- 

 Pt. lavellanuK, in the New Georgia group by Pt. ruliiamis, in the 

 Guadalcanar group by Pt. rayneri, and in the San Christoval group 

 by Pt. coynatns. Other, though much less complete, evidence to the 

 same effect is afforded by the two species of the Pteropus Jiypo- 

 meJanus group {Pt. colonus in the Bougainville group, replaced by 

 Pt. sohmonis in tlie New Georgia groui>), the two species of Ptera- 

 lope.v {anceps in the Bougainville group, replaced by atraia in the 

 Guadalcanar group), and the two Dobsonia (nesea in the Bougain- 

 ville and New Georgia groups, replaced by inermis in the San 

 Christoval group) [compare the distribution of the three known 

 Solomon Islands species of the Microchiropteran genus Hippiosiderus, 

 IJ. diiwps in the New Georgia group, H. oceanitis in Guadalcanar, 

 and //. deinissus in San Christoval]. The faunistic areas of the 

 vSolomon Archipelago indicated by the distribution of the five 

 species of the Pteropms raj/neri group are very nearly the same as 

 those lately recognized by ornithologists. 



Australian subregion (Continent of Australia). 



o genera (none peculiar), 8 species (six peculiar). The only 

 genera which have reached the Australian continent are Pteroptis 

 (five sjiecies), Nyctimene (two), and Syconycteris (one); all of these 

 occur also in New Guinea, which however is inhabited, in addition, 

 by four genera which have not spread to Australia, viz. liottsettus, 

 Pohsonia, MacroyJossus (extends to the Torres Straits islands, but 

 has thus far not been recorded from Australia), and Mdonycteris. 



