p26 riKUOIHTS aiGANTEUS. 



64. Pteropus gigaiiteus, Briinn. 



I'terojHOi mediiis (pt.), Dobsou, Cat. Chir. B. il. p. .51. 



(Sjiionyiiis uiulyr the subspecies.) 



Dlai/noxis. — Skull typical Pteropine. Cin^ulutn of canines very 

 narrcAV ; posterior ledges of chcek-teetli practically wautius'. Ears 

 very long, exposed, attenuated above, subacutely pointed. Tibia 

 naked above. Fur rather sliort, more or less closely adpressed on 

 back. Bright mantle contrasting with blackish or bi'ownish back ; 

 breast and belly as bright as, or somewhat darker than, m.antle, but 

 never as dark as back. Size large : forearm 163-5-176'5 mm. 

 Hab. Indian I'eninsula, incl. Ceylon ; Nepal, Assam, Manipur. 



SJriill. — Essential chai'acters as in Pt. ruftis and comorens!),: 

 Brain-case rather longer and narrower ; rostrum somewhat heavier 

 (less distinctly compressed); orbits a little larger: diameter con- 

 tained 4'8-5 (in rufiis and comorensis 5-5'4) times in total length 

 of skull ; mesoptevygoid fossa broader. Postorbital processes strong, 

 sometimes fused with corresponding processes on zygomatic arch : 

 sagittal ciest well developed ; coronoid process relatively weak and 

 somewhat sloping; coronoid height much less than length of lower 

 tooth-row, c-m^ ; coudyle of mandible considerably above level <jf 

 alveolar line. 



Teeth. — Chief characters : cingulum of upper and lower canines 

 weak, forming only a very narrow rim ; posterior basal ledges of 

 cheek-teeth practically completely obliterated (sometimes traceable 

 in Pg) ; all cheek-teeth relatively smaller than in Pt. rufiis and 

 comorensis. — p' terete, spiculiforra, deciduous ; m" larger than pj and 

 m^ ; i„ about twice the bulk of i, : p, twice the size of i., ; m,^ equal 

 to or smaller than pj. — On individual anomalies in dentition, see 

 supra p. (56, footnote. 



PaJate-rid(/es.--5 + 5 + 3. Position of ridges 1-6 quite as in Pt. 

 riifus (p. 202) ; seventh terminating laterally at back of m^ or front 

 of m' ; eighth to tenth behind m^ ; eleventh to thirteenth situated 

 at palation border. Sometimes a more or less incomplete, divided 

 ridge, between the normal ninth and tenth ridge, is present : formula 

 5-|-6-|-3, compare Pt. vampyriis and Pt. rufiis. 



Ears. — Very long, exposed, reaching back of eye wheu laid 

 forward. Inner margin flatly convex from base to tip ; outer 

 margin more strongly convex in lower two-thirds, rather abruptly 

 concave in upper third ; tip conspicuously attenuated, subacutely 

 pointed. Naked posteriorly, except at base. 



Jn?er/e)no)Y<Z.— Unusually well developed in centre (depth about 

 18-25 mm.), posterior margin generally not quite concealed by 

 overhanging hairs of rump and membrane. 



Wings. — Arising about 26 mm. apart from sides of back. 



Fur. — Length and quality somewhat varying according to the 

 subspecies : very short, rather rigid, and closely adpressed on 

 back in examples from the Indian Peninsula and Ceylon, moderate 

 in length, softer, and lees closely adpressed in specimens from 



