2 INTRODUCTION. 



The ancient Egyptians appear to have been little acquainted 

 with the natural productions of any other country than their 

 own, — at least, we have no evidence that they were ; for neither so 

 conspicuous a bird as the Peacock, nor even the Common Fowl, 

 are represented on their lasting monuments. Of the eastern 

 countries Alexander's expedition doubtless greatly increased the 

 knowledge of the Greeks, furnishing materials for the philo- 

 sophic mind of Aristotle, and certainly extending the knowledge 

 of Pliny, as is evidenced by his ' Ilistoria Naturalis,' the only 

 work which has come down to us of the latter great naturalist. 

 Pliny, standing out as a bright star in zoological science at the 

 period he lived, was doubtless tolerably acquainted with the 

 natural productions of Eastern Europe, Arabia, North-eastern 

 Africa, slightly with those of Persia, and still less so with those 

 of India. 



Tt may be fairly said, that the earliest dawn of natural history 

 commenced with the Christian era, — Aristotle living just before, 

 and Pliny soon after, the advent of our Saviour. This early 

 dawn, however, was for a long period obscured by the dark 

 ages which succeeded; for it was not until the connncncemcnt 

 of the 17th century that Aldrovandus, Piso, Marcgrave, and 

 Willughl)y wrote their works on this branch of science. At 

 this comparatively late period, the ]»roduction3 of Europe 

 were better known; Africa had been fur a long time circum- 

 navigated, and its southern fauna partially brought to light j 

 India also iji like manner furnished her quota, though sparingly, 

 to the stock of human knowledge. What Alexander's C(,le- 

 brated expedition did for the naturalists Aristotle and Pliny, 

 the discoveries of Columbus did by shedding a new light upon 

 zoological science, and furnishing fresh food to the modern writers 

 above mentioned. Linn;eus, the greatest of all systematists, had 

 a very extended knowledge of the natural productions of the 

 globe, and the information this great man has left behind him in 

 his numerous writings is considerable. Still, the southern land 

 which we designate Australia (the mammalian ])roducts of which 



