DAWKINS ON THE DENTITION OF HT^NA SPEL^A, 95 



of the SpelsDan Hyena. It is just possible, that as now the Brown 

 and Spotted Hyena are found side by side with the living Hippopo- 

 tamus in South Africa, so both may have been associated with Hippo- 

 potamus major, in the Fauna of the Newer Pliocene, in Britain ; but 

 the balance of evidence preponderates in favour of the latter species 

 only and its varieties. In a word the whole question hinges upon 

 this point, — Is H. h^imnea specifically distinct from, or merely a 

 variety of H. crocuta ? — a point which as yet has not been placed 

 beyond all doubt.* 



§. V. In systematic arrangement the Spelaean Hyena may be 

 divided into two varieties ; — a being the S. intermedia of Marcel 

 de Serres, /3 the JEL. Perrieri of ^IM. Croizet and Jobert ; the former 

 of which points towards H. brunnea. In the preceding remarks 

 I have attempted to prove that the apparent differences between 

 it and H. crocuta, so far as relate to the dental series, do not obtain 

 in every case, but are merely accidents of no specific value. And 

 after a careful comparison of a very large series of remains, repre- 

 senting all the hard parts of the fossil hyena, I can detect no 

 greater difi"erences between it and the H. crocuta, than between 

 the Wolf of the caves, and that now living in Europe, or between 

 the fossil and the recent Eeindeer. It is indeed to a careful search 

 for minute distinctions between recent and fossil animals, originat- 

 ing in the main from the idea that the present order of things 

 is separated from the past by some great catastrophe, that we 

 owe a great many of our so-called fossil species. Now that 

 Archaeology is creating a kingdom for itself, in the border land be- 

 tween the Historical Period and that of the Newer Pliocene, it is 

 most essential that the true relation of the fossil to the recent species 

 should be fully realized. In this particular case the name S. 

 spelcea (Goldfuss) is retained, merely as representing that section 

 of the existing H. crocuta which inhabited Europe in the Newer 

 Pliocene times. 



§. YI. The following table of measurements, taken at the base of 

 the teeth in inches and tenths, shows at a glance the relative size of 

 the teeth of the recent and Spelaean Hyenas. It may be compared 

 with those given by Cuvier, Deslonghamps, Croizet and Jobert, and 

 Dr. Schmerling. 



* Van Der Hoeven (Handbook of Zoology, 8vo. vol. ii. p. 705, translated by 

 Dr. Clarke) gives references to the literature of the recent Hyenas. I have adopted 

 his views with reference to their classification. 



