Heugruis " Reise Nach Abessijiien" 159 



Many other mammals are mentioned in Heuglin's pages, but it 

 is for the most part a mere mention — a record of their names as he 

 meets with them, and that is all. Among them are elephants, 

 rhinoceroses, hippopotami, one or two undescribed otters, one or 

 two undescribed mice (of one of which he makes a new genus, 

 Oreomys), the Manis Temminckii, the Orycteropus Aethiopicus 

 (ofwhose underground proceedings against the ants he gives an 

 account), and many antelopes. One general reflection flows from 

 an examination of these notices, and that is, that there is in the high 

 plateaus a decided preponderance of African over Mediterranean 

 or European types of mammals — that is, of forms recruited from the 

 south over those drawn from the north. Taking Fitzinger's list of 

 the mammals of North-East Africa (as being fuller than the casual 

 records in this volume), and picking out the mammals of Abys- 

 sinia from those not occurring within its limits, we find them to 

 be ninety-six, including those of both Highlands and Lowlands. Of 

 these, forty-two are found also in Central or Southern Africa, 

 twenty-one in the Mediterranean district,* and the remaining 

 thirty-two peculiar to Abyssinia. If again we separate the Low- 

 land from the Highland species (/. e., species found above 8000 

 feet above the level of the sea) we find thirty-five characteristic of 

 the Highlands, and fifty-eight of the Lowlands, and thirteen either 

 common to both, or which we are unable to place for want of 

 information. 



With regard to birds, again, in looking over Heuglin's lists, 

 what has chiefly struck us is the gradual increase of South 

 African forms which make their appearance as he goes on his way 

 southwards. As in the mammals, the preponderance of African 

 form is apparent from the first, but we think the gradual increase 

 of these southern fomis is fully more marked. 



Another deduction from these records would seem to be that 

 the range of the birds is not more extended than that of the 

 mammals. It might naturally be expected to be more so, but we 

 do not thiuk that this is the case in nature. This is a point, 

 however, for further inquiry, which we scarcely vouch as to 

 Heuglin's book, but think worthy of more careful investigation. 



* The difficulty of drawing the Hne of separation between the Mediterranean 

 and South African district in Nubia, Senaar, Darfour, &c., renders this point 

 of the calculations less accurate than we should wish, but the approximation is 

 sufficient for our purpose. 



