lO KANSAS UNIVERSITY QUARTERLY. 



antiqiius shows that the striking cliaracteristic of the species is that 

 the horn cores stand out at right angles to the longitudinal axis of 

 the cranium, so that a line drawn across the back of the cranium 

 completely misses them. Bison antiqiius is thus the only species 

 of North American bison whose cranium will stand squarely on its 

 occipital region, as in all other species the horn cores rake back- 

 wards and project beyond the back of the skull. It is further dis- 

 tinguished by the fact that the tips of the horn cores barely rise 

 above the level of the plane of the forehead, a feature shown in the 

 uppermost figure of plate XVII, illustrating Mr. Stewart's paper. 

 It may here be said that after comparing the cranium from Califor- 

 nia, named Bison californiciis by Mr. Rhoads,* with the type of B. 

 antiqiius, it has been impossible to discover any differences between 

 them, so that B. californicus must be considered a synonym. The 

 horn cores of Bison antiqiius contrast with those of B. occidcntalis. 

 in being proportionately shorter, more abruptly conical and stouter, 

 the horns of the latter species more nearly approximating those of 

 Bison bison, although of course being much larger. The salient 

 cranial differences between B. occidentalis and B. bison, such as the 

 greater length of the cranium in the fossil species, and the larger, 

 more pointed nasals have been pointed out by Mr. Stewart, and 

 are shown in the plate accompanying this article. 



So far but two species of fossil bison have been found in Alaska, 

 Bison crassicornis Richardson and Bison occidentalis Lucas. The 

 former of these has never been found outside of Alaska, and is ap- 

 parently confined to the more northwestern part of the territory. 

 Consequently it is not improbable that its affinities are with some 

 Siberian form, and that, like Ursus iniddcndorfi and Oris dalli it 

 represents an influx from Asia. Bison occidentalis appears to be 

 more nearly like the existing Bison bison, and from the conditions 

 under which the Kansas specimen was found seems to have been 

 co-existent with man and possibly with the existing species of 

 bison as well. 



*Proc. Acad. Nat. 5?ci., Phila., 1897, p. 501. 



