238 ON THE ,, diana" 



a phrase in Marcgrave's Historia naturalis ^), where the 

 latter described a Moakey from Guinea, which Monkey 

 was according to the view of Linnaeus a specimen agreeing 

 with his Diana : the figure of that Monkey in Marcgrave's 

 book , however, represents certainly not a Diana, as it is 

 black throughout, with exception of the white beard , and 

 moreover has a prehensile tail. This may be so or not, 

 the fact remains that the locality of Linnaeus-type-speci- 

 men of Diana was unknown. Bufifon's Roloioay was from 

 the coast of Guinea. Gray's diana var. ignita was from 

 West-Africa , therefore of no value for our purpose ^). 

 Dr. Sclater (P. Z. S. L. 1893, p. 254) names among the 

 habitat of C. diana, Niger (Fraser) and Delta of the Niger 

 (Fraser): »I see (P. Z. S. L. 1841, p. 97) that Fraser 

 » wrote to the Zoological Society, that at Bassa he saw 

 »some skins of Cercopithecus diana, said to be common in 

 »that district and that skins of that species were extremely 

 » plentiful at Accra." Bassa however is in Liberia and 

 Accra is on the Gold-Coast , both localities having nothing 

 to do with the Niger. Dr. Sclater wrote to me d.d. Nov. 8, 

 »I cannot at present find my authority for giving Niger 

 » (Fraser) as locality for C. diana.'^ In every case Fraser 

 procured no specimens , he only saw them , so his statement 

 has no scientific signification at all. I know no other 



1) Georgi Marcgravi de Liebstad, Misnici germani, Historiae rerum natura- 

 lium brasiliae, libri octo. 1648, p. 237. Linnaeus wrote Margrave instead of 

 Marcgrave and said, p. 213 of Handlingar: „Hans ord pag. 227 arc desse: 

 hon kallas Icongo Exqidma ^'' a very nonsensical translation of Marcgrave's 

 writing, for on p. 227 Marcgrave wrote: -m Congo vocatur Erquima." Both 

 capital mistakes of Linnaeus have been verbatim transscribed by Professor 

 Kastner without any remark , nay he added another incorrectness by citing 

 p. 277 instead of p. 227. 



2) In P. Z S. L. 1832, p. 123, there have been described some animals 

 exhibited on the meeting of the Zoological Society and obtained by Mr. Gould 

 from Algoa Bay and at that very meeting also several specimens were exhibited 

 of imperfect skins of Cercopithecus Biana, obtained from the same locality. 

 For the Diana this locality is verjj suspect and it may be asked where all 

 those specimens have been preserved after the exhibition in the mentioned 

 meeting? 



Notes from ttie Lieyclen IVIiiseiitn, Vol. XX. 



