riKKorrs AXKEiuMrs. 363 



il. The PiKHOPrs alecto group. 



Slides. — ri. atcrrimus, alecto, morio, rjoaldi. 



ll(ni(/e. — Celebes. Baweau Island (Java ISea), Lesser f^unda 

 Islands, X. and E. Australia. 



General characters. — Skull unmodified rteropino. Dentilion in 

 t yi)ifal species weaker than usual, premolars -without posterior basal 

 ledges. Ears hi/pornelamts style; interfemoral more developed in 

 centre thau usiuil, but less so than in Ft. vampiirus ; fur generally 

 short and closely adpressed on back ; tibia naked above. Colour 

 remarkalily dark : blackish or scal-I)ro\vn above and beneath, more 

 or less thinly sprinkled with greyish-white hairs ; mantle dark- 

 coloured, vandyck-brown, cliestnut, chocolate, or seal-brown. 

 Males without glandular neck-tufts, but with fur of mantle rather 

 more rigid and unctuous than in females. Size medium or lar"e 

 (forearm 141-180 mm.). 



Diffcrentiaiion of species. — Pt. aterrimus is the least specialized 

 l'(irm ; the size of the teeth is not appreciably reduced, and there is 

 generally some trace of a posterior b;isal ledge in p' and p . In the 

 oilier three species the dentition is remarkably weak, and the basal 

 ledges of the ])remolars have disappeared. Ft. atcrrimus is known 

 only from Eawcan Island, Pt. sumhanus from Sumba and Savu • 

 I he range of Pt. alecto extends from Celebes, through Salayer 

 lo Lombok ; Pt. tjoukli is an only slightly modified Australian 

 lepresentative of Pt. alecto. 



Affinities of <jroup. — The Pt. alecto replaces the Oriental I't. 

 var:i2>i/riis group in Celebes, the Lesser Sunda Islands, and Australia. 

 It accords with Pt. vampiirus in all important characters of the 

 teeth, differing chiefly in the smaller and less pointed ears and some- 

 what shorter iuterremoral. The dark colour of the mantle and fur 

 in the Pt. alecto gioup is very closely approached by the eastern, 

 '" melanistic " races of Pt. vampyrus. 



GO. Pteropus aterrimus, Matschie. 

 Pteropus alecto (pt.), Dobson, Cat. Chir. B. M. p. 56, 



Pteropus atcrrimus, Temminck, Coup d'ail Ind. Archip. i. p. 33.'i 



(1840 : J3aweau) (nom. imd.) ; id., Esq. Zool. p. 5!J (pt.) (1853: 



J5a\vean) (nom. mid.), 

 rieropus nicobaricus b. atenimus, Matschie, Meijachir. p. 17 (1899: 



J5:iwean) ; Truuessart, Cat. Mamm., Siippl. p. 50 (1004 : Buwean). 

 Pteropus nicobaricus aterrimus, Willink, Aat. Tijd. Aederl. 1ml. Ixv! 



p. :.'7o ( 1 905 : Eawean). 

 Ptt ropus alecton (pt.), Temmi)ick, Esq. Zool. pp. 58-00 (1853 : 



Paweun). 

 I'teropiis alecto (pt., nee Temm. 1837), Wai/ner, 6'i7iredcr's Siiiu/., 



Hifjipl. V. p. 599 (1853-55 : Hawean) ; Peters, MB. Ahad. Berlin, 



1807, p. 3l'9 (liawean) ; Fitziiir/er, .S'i»". AAad. Wien, Ix. Abth. i. 



p. 43-J (1870 : Bawean) ; Dobson, Cat. Chir. Ti. M. p. 50 (1878); 



Troue^siirt, liev. iSf Ma//. Zo(d. (3) vi. p. 202(1879: Ikwean); 



Jeutink, Cat. Ost. Mamm.. p. I'tiU (1887 : liuweau^ ; id., Cat. liii/stl 



Mamm. p. 1-17 (18^8 : Jjaw can). 



