.«^. NOTES AND COMMENTS. 567 



that this memoir has been pubHshed in the Archives of the Lyon 

 Museum, it goes without saying that, both as regards letterpress and 

 illustrations, it is all that can be desired. 



From the La Grive deposits, Dr. Deperet now recognises upwards 

 of 46 species of mammals, the great majority of which are identical 

 with those of Sansan. Indeed, most of the species peculiar to the 

 Isere locality are mammals of small size, the remains of which are 

 naturally liable to escape detection. The most interesting part of the 

 memoir before us relates to the peculiar creature known as Macro- 

 theyium, and it is to this portion that our few remarks will, in the main, 

 apply. 



It may be within the knowledge of many of our readers that the 

 Miocene Mammal known as M acrothcrium was first described on the 

 evidence of claw-bones of the feet, which apparently indicated an animal 

 more or less closely allied to Edentates, like the living Pangolin and 

 the extinct Megatherium ; and that, although other bones of the limbs 

 had been obtained, its skull appeared to be still unknown. On the 

 other hand, the mammal which had been previously named Chalico- 

 therium was known merely by the skull and teeth, which resembled 

 those of certain Perissodactyle Ungulates. Now, only a few years 

 ago, Dr. Filhol startled the zoological world by the announcement 

 that the presumed Edentate Macrotherium and the Ungulate Chalico- 

 therium were really one and the same, the limbs of the one and the 

 skull of the other having been found in association at Sansan ; and 

 it is not a little remarkable that this discovery should have been so 

 shortly followed by a second at La Grive, where a whole skeleton 

 was likewise brought to light. Unfortunately, however, this specimen 

 was broken up before Dr. Deperet appeared on the spot ; and when 

 he arrived it was only possible to rescue the limbs, skull, and a few 

 vertebrae. 



The results of the observations of the learned author have been 

 to show that, although Macrotherium of the Sansan and La Grive 

 Miocene is closely allied to CJialicotherium of the overlying Eppelsheim 

 beds, yet that the two are really distinct, the -so-called Ancylotherimn 

 of the Pikermi beds being identical with the latter. The chief point 

 of difference between the two is to be found in the circumstance that, 

 whereas in Macrotherium the fore limb is much longer than the hinder — 

 this being especially shown by the radius being nearly twice the 

 length of the tibia — in Chalicotherium the two limbs are approximately 

 equal. There is, moreover, a difference in the structure of the bones 

 of the claws, those of Chalicotherium being less deeply cleft than in 

 the other genus ; and it is curious to observe that in both these 

 respects the later form is less specialised than the older one. 



In regard to their affmities, it may be observed that Dr. Filhol 

 was disposed to regard these remarkable creatures as most nearly 

 allied to the existing Edentates, his opinion being largely based on the 

 circumstance that the skull exhibited the smooth contour in the region 



